Harry Potter and the Unfortunate Son
by Colin The Master of Whisperers
Summary: Harry Potter is about to turn eleven, and his relatives are fed up with him being around their house, so they do the unthinkable. They tell him what he is. As Harry makes his way through his First Year at Hogwarts, he discovers that almost everybody can be redeemed. AU. First of Seven Stories. ***This is a re-upload. I decided that I wanted all of my stories in one place.***
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

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— PROLOGUE —

 _Ten Years Earlier_

A small boy of fifteen months sat in his crib, his eyes sparkling and looking around, attempting to discern where all the sounds around him were coming from and murmuring happily to himself. There were birds cheerfully tweeting and leaves rustling as the wind battered the large, old, oak tree outside the open window close to the boy's head. A cold breeze came in through the window and ruffled his thick, almost jet-black hair, causing him to laugh, though it was more like a small squeak. The room around him was, despite the coming darkness of the night, painted a light blue, but there were many differently coloured objects littered about the place. His eyes were drawn to something on the floor that was coloured an emerald green.

"Mumma!" he shouted gleefully when he saw the colour. He was happy as it was the same colour as his mother's wonderfully green eyes. It was at that very moment that his mother walked into the room with a very pleasant look on her face. The boy looked up at her, smiled and giggled. He watched her long, flaming red hair blow around slightly as a result of the breeze. Her green eyes sparkled.

"My, my," his mother said to him with a fake annoyed look on her face that failed to conceal her obvious smile. "Look who's awake."

She picked him up and twirled him around a bit and he giggled knowing that he would be getting kisses from her afterwards. He was correct. He giggled again as his mother laughed and looked at the open window. "That's why it's so chilly in here. I'll need to talk to James about that," she said seriously before suddenly turning cheerful again. "Did Daddy leave the window open again?" she asked her son with a throaty laugh as he gave her a somewhat cheeky smile.

"Birdy!" the little boy cried, remembering why the window was open in the first place. His father had been letting some birds land on the windowsill and helped his son to feed them from his hand.

"Oh, so that's why it was open, was it? You were feeding the birds?" his mother asked playfully before tickling him and making him laugh loudly. While she did this, the door burst open quickly, but quietly. The toddler's mother grasped him tightly for just a second.

"Dadda!" the toddler cried happily, squirming in his mother's arms at the sight of his father. His father was a tall man and had very untidy, black hair which his son had clearly inherited from him. His father's eyes, however, were hazel and encased by round rimmed glasses. His father walked into the room and picked the boy up out of his mothers' arms and kissed his cheek.

"Damn it, James," the toddler's mother said in annoyance. "I've told you not to do that. Not with ... him around."

"I'm sorry, Lily," James replied, tickling his son slightly. "I guess I wasn't thinking."

"No, no you weren't," Lily replied, her annoyance only slightly abated. "And next time, close the window. I don't want Harry getting a cold and quite frankly, I don't feel comfortable with Harry being alone in a room with a window open at all."

"I know I should have closed the window, but Harry just fell asleep in my arms, so I put him to bed and forgot about it completely. Honey, everything's fine. No one suspects Peter," James replied calmly, setting Harry down in the crib with a red ball. "We're as safe as we can possibly be." Lily scoffed.

"Do you really believe that?" she asked angrily. "I mean, come on James. I know Peter is your friend, but can we really trust him?"

"Yes, of course we can," James replied. "We've had this conversation before. Multiple times. What do you have against Peter?"

"Nothing, but this is our lives, James," Lily replied with a sigh. "Harry's life. Can we really trust Peter with that? You know what people say about Animagi, don't you James? The animal supposedly represents your personality. Peter's form is a rat. We rushed into this. We should have chosen Sirius."

"Peter's Animagus form is a rat because he likes to know things that he has no right to," James replied exasperatedly. "And we chose right. No one suspects Peter. _He_ will be looking straight to Sirius, if Snape has anything to say about it."

"Despite what you may think, James," Lily said, her anger slightly going away, "Severus has quite a tactical mind and knows both of us too well to think we would actually choose Sirius. Plus he knows about Remus' problem. Who does that leave?"

"Lily, everything will be fine," James said, leaning over the crib just in time to see Harry abandon the red ball for a smaller, golden one. Lily chuckled a little.

"Really, James?" Lily asked. "The Quaffle again? You know how he likes the Snitch. Are you really trying to get him to follow in your footsteps when he's only fifteen months old?"

"A man can dream, I suppose," James replied with a sigh. "I guess he'll be in a good position as a Seeker."

"As long as he isn't a beater, I'm happy," Lily replied with a small smile. "Speaking of brain damage caused by a bludger, when is Sirius getting here? Halloween dinner is almost done. I need him to be here by eight so he and you can devour it like the animals you are."

"Hey!" James shouted in mock anger. "I love your cooking! And I know for a fact Sirius does as well. If we didn't, there would be no animalistic devouring of any kind. You are an amazing cook. And I need to remember to tell Sirius that one. He'd get a kick out of it."

"I love you, James Potter," Lily said with a laugh.

"I love you too, Lily," James said, leaning over and kissing her lightly.

At that moment, there was a sharp intake of breath from Harry in the crib as a look of astonishment spread across his young face. He was looking directly at a beautiful, silvery version of a large, shaggy dog that had just walked through the door of his bedroom. "Pa'foo'!" Harry said happily, standing in the crib to get a better look at the dog that was now illuminating the room. Lily and James looked at each other.

"Sirius doesn't usually use his Patronus to send messages," James said quietly, obviously concerned. "The last time was when the Prewett boys were in trouble." Lily started to say something, but was cut off by the Patronus.

" _He_ knows where you are. _He's coming_ ," Sirius' voice said, emanating from the silver dog and sounding very angry and rushed. "That traitorous rat bastard told him! Hold the fort until I get there, James. Lils, you need to protect Harry. I have to tell Dumbledore before I go there. I'm sorry I can't do more."

"James ..." Lily started, her mouth gaping unusually. Both of their faces had drained of all colour. Without warning, Lily moved away from James and snatched Harry up from the crib, clinging to him tightly. She attempted to Apparate away, but found that she couldn't. She then moved to exit the room, but James stopped her.

"Move, James," she said angrily. "We need to get outside so we can Apparate away."

"Lily," James said hoarsely. "Look out the window." Lily looked at him like he was a crazy person, but did what he said. When she did, she saw a flash of green light that seemed to be from streets away.

"Oh, god, he's here already," she said quietly. "James, what do I do?"

"You know how to check the wards," he replied. "Check them and see what he got rid of. He may have been careless." Lily did as she was asked with her wand.

"Most are still in place, but they are the ones in his favour," Lily replied a few moments later, panicking slightly. "He added an Anti-Apparition ward as well, somehow. And the fire wards are down."

"He must have a Curse-breaker on his side," James said anxiously.

"James..." Lily said, clinging to Harry.

"Don't leave," James suddenly said. "I'm going to head him off. We can't just wait for him to find us. It'll take Sirius too long to contact Dumbledore. The feast will just have started, so that makes it even harder. I need to buy some time."

"What?" Lily asked, bewildered. "James, you can't. He'll kill you."

"I'm trained as an Auror, Lily," James replied. "I may not use those skills as often as I would like, but I should be able to hold him off for a while at least. And if Mad-Eye is to be believed, he likes to talk when it's one-on-one. That's more time there. Just stay with Harry. But if anything happens that seems ... final, just leave. Run away. Whatever you do, don't let that ... _thing_ touch my son."

Lily looked into her husband's eyes and saw a glint she hadn't seen since he had pursued her at Hogwarts. She knew nothing would come between him and his decision so she simply nodded, clinging to Harry.

"I love you, Lily Potter," James said, his voice no louder than a whisper. He kissed Lily deeply and then kissed his son on the top of his head. "I love you too, Harry. I hope you know that."

"Oh, James!" Lily cried, flinging herself and Harry into James' arms. "Of course he knows. He loves you. I love you."

Lily found it difficult to say even that knowing what he was going to do for them. James kissed her and Harry once more before leaving the blue room with his wand clutched in one hand, closing the door behind him. He had never looked so focused.

Harry wanted to leave his mother's slightly smothering embrace, but even as young as he was, he could sense that something was wrong so he didn't budge as she held him close to her. His mother had her back to the window, so Harry was able to see over her shoulder and outside.

Lily was muttering things to her son, but Harry did not take very much notice, especially when he heard a high-pitched, cruel laugh come from the yard below. His mother, Harry noticed, was breathing very quickly and was starting to hold him even tighter, not relinquishing her hold at all. Outside the window, Harry began to see a lot of pretty lights.

"Dadda!" Harry cried happily when he saw the lights. He had only ever seen the lights from his father and Padfoot.

Lily, realising exactly what Harry could see, swiftly turned to an angle where neither she, nor Harry, could see the lights. She was well aware what was happening and didn't believe that she could stomach seeing even the slightest indication that her husband was fighting the madmen who wanted to destroy the world.

The change in angle didn't help shield either of them from the massive amount of green light that came just a few minutes later and filled the room completely. Lily wailed as she recognised what had happened, which caused Harry to jump. After a second she caught herself, and stopped, realising that the sound would draw him closer.

Harry couldn't see any lights, and looked up at his mother who had tears flowing down her face now. Harry didn't like seeing his mummy sad, especially so because he didn't fully understand why she was sad. What had happened? What was the pretty green light? Harry had never seen _that_ one before. He looked into her now open green eyes. They weren't sparkling like they usually were, so he crept up slightly and gave her a kiss on the lips and looked again. They were sparkling again. He liked it when they sparkled.

Lily managed a weak smile before moving quickly to exit the room. Before she could leave she heard slow, deliberate footsteps creeping up the stairs leading to the hallway from which the room she and Harry were in stemmed. Lily realised, to her chagrin, that she had waited too long to get out of the house. Lily backed away from the door and reached into her pocket and pulled out her wand. She pointed the wand at the door, her hand shaking quite a bit.

The footsteps stopped. Lily felt her heart rate quicken.

BANG!

His mother jumped at the loud sound and squeezed Harry very hard, but he knew enough to know not to cry out in pain.

It was not the door in front of her. Lily realised that it must have been hers and James' room. She stifled a cry as she realised that it was now clear that it had not been James who casted the Killing Curse. She did not lower her wand, however, and kept it aimed at the door, her hands still shaking.

BANG!

A second crash was heard and Lily jumped again, although she was not as startled as she was at the first. She still did not lower her wand even a centimetre. She, once more, heard footsteps approaching, though this time they were closer. Her heart sank into her stomach. Lily knew what was coming. She could do nothing to stop it. She was going to do whatever she could to protect her baby boy.

She glanced at her son once more and found him looking right into her eyes. She smiled at the thought of her beautiful young boy who she hoped would grow up to be an amazing man. She kissed Harry on the cheek, with tears standing in her eyes.

"I love you, Harry," she told her baby boy in the most confident voice she could muster.

"Wuv you mumma," Harry replied in a quiet voice. He smiled brightly at her and his eyes sparkled like stars. She liked it a lot when they sparkled. A few tears escaped Lily's eyes. She quickly glanced out the window at the oak tree. In the short time that she had lived here, Lily had loved living in Godric's Hollow. It was beautiful. More tears escaped. All the while, Lily had not lowered her wand. Her eyes turned to the door once more and she prepared for the inevitable.

BANG!

The door blew inwards and, as if through instinct alone, Lily turned to protect her son. She swiftly placed him in the crib and turned around in time to see him walk through the door. _If he wants to touch Harry, he is going to have to kill me first. I will die before he touches Harry_ , she thought, anger rising in her throat. The man, if he could be so-called, walked slowly into the room, but to Lily's surprise, he moved to brush past her and headed straight towards Harry's crib.

"NO! You will _not_ touch him!" Lily screamed at him. He turned to look at her with his red eyes, deformed such that they resembled the slits of a snake's eyes. Her heart skipped a beat when he looked at her. She was still shaking, but less so and held her wand firmly in her hand, not looking to let it go at any point. The shaking subsided surprisingly quickly as Lily realised that she was the only thing keeping Harry alive. No Dumbledore. No Alastor. No Remus. No Sirius. No James.

"What makes you think you can stop me?" the man with many names asked her with a sneer that pulled his already ugly face grotesquely. It was a strange thing to notice, but Lily found herself thinking that he had an odd voice. It seemed that this man would have a very intimidating voice, but in reality it was not intimidating at all. It didn't really need to be in the end. His presence alone was intimidating enough. "You are a Muggle. No Muggle yet has put up even the slightest fight."

"I am a witch!" Lily tried to shout, but her voice broke halfway through the sentence and she couldn't manage it.

"Really?" the man asked with a sneer. "What makes you believe that you are deserving of that title? Your parents were Muggles, were they not? Your grandparents, also Muggles? And their parents as well? I thought as much. So I'm afraid you don't deserve to be called a witch! You are a Muggle! Nothing more. Muggles are less than dirt, and should be treated as such. I _despise_ them." The last sentence was said with such ferocity and hatred that Lily knew that he truly believed what he was saying. It was the whole point of his existence. Lily felt her anger rise in her throat again.

"Why?" she asked in an angry tone. She felt as if she was looking death right in the eye as she spoke. She hoped that if she stalled for long enough that someone would show up. Sirius. Remus. Frank. Alice. Albus. Anyone. It was a long shot, but it was all she could do. _Anything to protect Harry_.

"Why? My father was a Muggle! He left my mother when it got too _rough_ for him. Of course I found him and killed him," he said in a creepily off-handed tone. "Now, if you will step aside you foolish girl, I will do what I came to do. If your husband wasn't so utterly stupid he might have lived as well. This is your first warning. Step aside and you shall be spared."

It finally dawned on Lily why he was here. It wasn't for her or James. It was for Harry. _The Prophecy_ , she thought angrily. She felt herself beginning to panic as she remembered just how important it was for Harry to survive.

"Not Harry, please no, don't kill him, take me, kill me instead!" she pleaded longingly with the man staring at her with his red slits.

"This is my final warning," the man informed her calmly but with a sneer as if he wasn't even considering leaving her alive. Lily started to cry.

"Not Harry! Please ... have mercy ... Not Harry! Please. I'll do anything." At this point she knew that she was sounding weak, but she wasn't going down without a fight. She raised her wand and started to do something she had hoped she would never have to, " _Avada_ ..."

" _Expelliarmus_!" the red-eyed man cried. Lily's wand flew out of her hand and landed on the carpeted floor behind her. She turned straight to Harry and looked into his eyes. He didn't look the least bit frightened or scared. He just looked at her with his same angelic face, smiling at her.

"I love you Harry," Lily said quietly, silently brushing her hands on his cheeks.

" _Avada Kedavra_!" screamed the evil man and Harry's mother slumped to the floor. There was a high, shrill laugh as she hit the floor. Harry looked on not aware of what was happening.

"Now, child. You will cause me no grief. I, Lord Voldemort, have defeated a prophecy, something which no man has ever done. I am the strongest wizard ever to have lived. Goodbye, Harry Potter," he looked at the child who smiled at the mention of his name. This angered Lord Voldemort immensely. " _AVADA KEDAVRA_!" he shouted as his wand pointed directly at the child's head. As Voldemort finished the words, he felt a shiver go down his spine. Normally this feeling was reserved for the pleasure of killing, but there was something wrong this time.

Voldemort noticed, as the Killing Curse left his wand, that there was what appeared to be a emerald coloured shield forming around the body of the little boy in the crib. It was too late to stop himself. The curse had already left his wand and rebounded back at him upon contact with the emerald shield.

Voldemort didn't slump to the ground like those he had killed with the Killing Curse before. His body simply turned to dust.

The child remained in his crib, no longer smiling but crying loudly. He felt something sharp and painful on his forehead. The green shield suddenly burst outwards violently. The window behind the boy shattered and, unbeknownst to him, the rest of the house began to crumble and fall.

A drop of blood fell into Harry Potter's emerald green eyes just as he fell backwards, unconscious.


	2. Everything Changes

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

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— CHAPTER ONE —

 _Everything Changes_

Harry Potter looked up at the man looming over him. He was a very old man, judging by the long, silvery-grey beard and the almost equally long and silvery-grey hair. He wore golden, half-moon spectacles and Harry could somehow tell that he had a smile on his aged face despite the fact that his mouth, and the rest of his face for that matter, was obscured somehow, as though he almost didn't have a face at all. The man then suddenly turned around to leave and Harry felt the urge to call him back, but he found himself unable to do so. When the man was out of Harry's vision, he heard the unmistakable sound of a motorcycle roaring to life, its wheels squealing on the gravel as it quickly drove off into the distance.

Then, as was usual in dreams such as these, Harry saw a flash of green light that engulfed the entirety of his vision, felt a terrifying sense of impending doom and heard a strange, high-pitched, cruel laugh which made him shiver, even in his dream state.

Harry woke with a start, drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. He found that he had become wrapped up in the dust covered sheets on which he slept and struggled to extricate himself from them. This was the third time in a week that he had woken up in this manner, and from the exact same dream as well. There had been no differences whatsoever with the dreams. Even the end result was always the same. He always awoke suddenly, sweating, breathing quickly and scared of something that he couldn't quite comprehend or understand.

 _What is with this dream?_ Harry thought exasperatedly as he rubbed the lightning bolt scar on his forehead that had, as it always did after that particular dream, started to prickle. The bed on which he slept creaked softly as he sat up and looked around the tiny room, if you could even call it that. Harry slowly, and with shaking hands, put his black, round-rimmed glasses on. He could feel the tape on the bridge of his nose at first, but soon ignored it, as he had learned to do. It was extremely dark in the room, but then again, it always was as he didn't have a window and no light could get through the closed grate on the door.

Harry's bedroom was the cupboard under the stairs, and had been since he could remember. His aunt and uncle made him sleep there because they didn't like him in the slightest; a statement which Harry felt was a rather large understatement. Harry knew full well that, while they would never openly say it, they quietly encouraged Dudley, their son and Harry's cousin, to torment Harry wherever possible. It was very rarely that they did anything to him, but they always managed to look the other way whenever Dudley did something.

To say that Harry and Dudley were not treated equally was another rather large understatement. Harry's aunt and uncle saw their son as nothing short of an angel and believed that he could do no wrong. Harry, on the other hand, seemed to do something wrong by breathing, though Harry had never worked out just what it was that he was doing wrong.

Harry heard heavy footsteps coming down the hall above him, the sounds of which were amplified given his position directly beneath them. He gathered from the speed and intensity of the footsteps that it could only be his cousin. When the footsteps reached the middle of the stairs, they stopped abruptly. Harry then heard, and felt, his rather large cousin jumping up and down on the stairs, causing dirt and dust to fall from the roof of the cupboard, onto Harry's head and his bed. The only thing that made this bearable to Harry was that he knew that jumping on the stairs would cause his cousin to lose his breath. While he was coughing and spluttering, he heard a laugh from the stairs above him. Harry then attempted to pull on his socks when there was a sudden rapping at the door to the cupboard.

"Get up! Now!" Aunt Petunia screeched at him, as she did every morning, usually awakening him. She rapped a few more times on the small grate for good measure. "Hurry up!"

Harry was used to this type of treatment. It was almost like a morning ritual for Petunia Dursley. This 'ritual' of hers also seemed to include craning her neck to look into the neighbours' yards, puttering around the kitchen worried about what people think of her and tending to her husband and child's every whim, both of whom were too large to do much for themselves. Due to the apparent stress that she dealt with every day, Aunt Petunia was very skinny. At least, she was when compared to other members of her family besides Harry, who seemed to be entirely too skinny. Aunt Petunia seemed to take immaculate care of herself, particularly her blonde hair. Aunt Petunia truly believed that she was better than everybody else, though Harry knew that to be an outright lie. Not that anyone would ever believe him.

When Harry opened the door to the cupboard, he heard his cousin laughing again and saw him running. Harry was swiftly pushed back into the cupboard, with the door slammed shut once more. Harry groaned, but otherwise remained silent, knowing what would happen if he ever complained. He got up once again and entered the kitchen where he saw his cousin already sitting down to his 'hearty' breakfast of sausages and bacon wrapped in pancakes.

Dudley Dursley was a very large eleven-year-old with a mop of blonde hair that sat upon his head rather than grew from it. Everything about Dudley seemed cruel, right down to his strangely cold blue eyes. It seemed, to Harry, that Dudley's chair should have been made bigger for him. Harry had always had a strong dislike for Dudley, due to the fact that he always found time to make Harry miserable. More often than not, Dudley did not do this alone. Usually, Dudley's best friend Piers Polkiss joined him to help make Harry into their very own personal punching bag.

Seated next to Dudley at the table was a man who looked to be the size of a small whale. Vernon Dursley, the undisputed head of the household, had black hair but, unlike his nephew, he kept his hair neatly parted and never looked at all the least bit scruffy. Uncle Vernon seemed to have no discernable neck, however he did have a thick black moustache, which was his defining feature. It was always a sight to see Uncle Vernon get angry because his face would turn a deep purple and Harry had always found the look rather humorous even though he was nearly always the one on the receiving end of the anger.

Harry quickly got to work, cooking breakfast for himself, although he couldn't think that making toast and having only a light spread of butter on it was actually cooking. Harry counted himself lucky that Dudley and Uncle Vernon had already been fed, otherwise he would have been forced to make their breakfast for them as well. He had just put the bread into the toaster when he heard Aunt Petunia behind him.

"Don't burn it!" she barked at him. She didn't trust Harry in the slightest despite that he had used a toaster hundreds of times in his short life.

"I won't Aunt Petunia," Harry replied for what had to be the millionth time. It was all he could say to her warnings as it was all she really wanted from him. Anything more and she would yell at him. Anything less and she would yell at him. Yelling seemed to be fun for her, though Harry thought the stress would be bad, not that he really cared all that much about his aunt's stress levels.

"You had better not. That toaster is virtually brand new and you wouldn't want to be the one to ruin it now would you?" she asked him matter-of-factly, not really expecting an answer at all. Harry turned to look at her and saw she was glaring at him as if she wanted him dead. _That look again_ , Harry thought feeling rather annoyed. During the whole exchange Uncle Vernon and Dudley never once looked in his direction, focusing all of their efforts on attempting to see the television from where they were sitting. In their defence, they appeared to be succeeding.

Harry ate quickly and left to go back to his cupboard to be alone and think. He thought about many things during the long days at Number 4, Privet Drive. On this particular day his thoughts lingered on his dreams for a particularly long time. Harry had experienced dreams like the one that had awoken him for as long as he could remember, but he could not make sense of them. They always seemed to be hiding something from him.

In one of the rare moments that he let his mind wander, it occurred to him that his birthday was just two weeks away and that he would turn eleven. It really didn't seem like a big deal to him, as it never did, because the Dursleys only ever acknowledged it with really poor gifts. _I wonder what it will be this year? Dog food? A piece of paper? A tissue?_ Harry thought bitterly to himself. He never liked his birthday at all. At least no more than any other day. It was just another day to him, just as it was for the Dursleys.

The rest of the day went by completely uneventfully as Harry stayed out of sight and the others forgot he even existed. The following day, after Aunt Petunia had woken him up with a start, he made breakfast for himself and, much to his dismay, Uncle Vernon and Dudley as well. It didn't go down well at all with complaining from the other two about a lot of supposed 'problems' with Harry's meal. "The toast is too dry – Did you even cook this bacon? – Is this an egg? Tastes more like paper to me." Harry bore these comments because he knew that they would eat it all, regardless. _Ungrateful gits_.

After breakfast Harry decided to go outside and lay on the grass in the backyard for a while, which he soon figured out was a very stupid idea. After about ten minutes of relaxation, he felt a hard blow to his ribs and laughter coming from above him. He stood up slowly, groaning and clutching at his ribs as he felt the anger rise within him and his pulse quicken as he looked at Dudley's pig-like face. Dudley kept laughing but was able to get in a sentence.

"Aw...did that kick hurt little Harry's side did it?" Dudley asked mockingly with a large, evil smile on his face before breaking out in laughter again and then when he finally stopped laughing he looked Harry directly in the eyes and threw a punch aimed at Harry's stomach. Harry clutched at his stomach and felt himself fall backwards and to the ground. His pulse became even faster.

Harry looked up at his cousin with anger burning in his emerald green eyes. Then, right before his very eyes, all of Dudley's clothes disappeared except for his underwear. It took a moment for Dudley to register what had happened before he ran into the house crying, or at least pretending to, while Harry was unable to control his laughter. It was hurting his ribs but it was more than worth it to see the look on Dudley's face. He didn't know what had happened to Dudley and, in the moment, he didn't care. As his laughter died down his eyes sparkled more than they had in many previous weeks.

When he finally stopped laughing he was shocked to see a very purple Uncle Vernon actually run out of the house and towards Harry, who was now leaning against a tree in the backyard. Harry knew that this was not going to end well at all. When Uncle Vernon reached Harry he grabbed the scruff of his collar and pushed him up against the tree, almost crushing Harry's throat in the process.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?" Uncle Vernon roared at Harry with a horrible gleam in his blue eyes which Harry knew all too well.

"I didn't do anything to him. What did he do to me? Oh, I don't know. Kicked me in the ribs and then punched me in the stomach," Harry replied with a very hollow sound in his voice as if he were ready to finally explode after nearly ten years with these people.

"Don't take that tone with me, boy," Uncle Vernon spat, speaking much quieter than when he had first spoken to Harry. He let go of Harry's collar and slapped him hard across the face which left Harry with a red, hand shaped mark on his cheek. He grabbed hold of Harry's collar once again while he said, "And you know damn well you did something! My boy ran inside with only his undergarments on and I am damn sure you had something to do with it!"

"I didn't do anything at all. I swear. One minute his clothes were there and the next they were gone. I certainly wasn't going to undress him. Why would I?" Harry asked his uncle, his former courage disappearing under a wave of hurt and fright.

"Because you're a damn freak! You are only living under my roof because _your_ worthless, good-for-nothing parents got themselves killed! And while you -" Uncle Vernon stopped suddenly and let go of Harry's collar slowly, his eyes widening almost comically. He looked as if his brain was actually formulating an idea, something which didn't happen very often. He then grabbed Harry's arm roughly and dragged him inside. Harry was surprised his shoulder didn't get dislocated at the force his uncle was pulling him.

When they got to the stairs he opened the cupboard door roughly and threw Harry in there, slammed the door and locked it from the outside. Harry wondered why he didn't say anything to him at all. Normally after being thrown into his 'room' he got a short, but very loud, lecture and a punishment length for whatever he had supposedly done wrong.

Over the years Harry had gotten in trouble for a lot of things that he didn't do but his aunt and uncle were absolutely sure that he had done. One time he got in trouble because he climbed a tree to get away from Dudley and Piers, but in reality he did no such thing. He just seemed to _appear_ in the tree. He didn't know how he did it, nor did he care at the time.

That got him a week in the cupboard.

Another time, his least favourite teacher had sent a letter home saying that Harry had caused her hair to change colour. Apparently she said that he "hid paint somewhere in the room and somehow managed to paint my hair a couple of times". Harry had done no such thing.

This was two weeks.

He seemed to always be in trouble about his hair. His black hair seemed to never be flat, no matter how hard he or Aunt Petunia tried. And after every haircut he looked the same. It always somehow grew back to the way that it had been previously almost instantly, no matter how short it was cut.

Each failed haircut earned him a week in the cupboard.

During his musings, Harry started to hear some loud arguing upstairs. He knew from the muffled voices that it was Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon even though he could only vaguely make out some of what they were saying. He heard Uncle Vernon say, "We don't want him here, why not there?" to which he heard no replies until he heard Uncle Vernon say something else a minute or so later. "It isn't going away like we planned, Petunia. It's still happening. Maybe it can't be eradicated." Harry no longer thought the conversation was about him but listened anyway. What else could he do, stuck in the cupboard under the stairs like he was?

He heard Aunt Petunia say, "But that would mean that he would be like her." It almost sounded like Aunt Petunia was talking about one of her soap operas. Probably someone getting a brain transplant or something stupid like that Harry thought, remembering that from one time he had seen an episode of a show Aunt Petunia liked.

It was a few minutes before he heard anything else and when he did it was Uncle Vernon. "So when will we tell him? What do we tell Dudley?" This made Harry's interest grow a bit more.

"We tell him right now," Petunia replied firmly but with a slight hint of anxiousness in her voice. "And we tell Dudley as well. We shouldn't keep him out of the loop." That seemed to be the end of their conversation and less than five minutes later the latch to his door was being unlocked quickly and Harry was wondering what was going on. Uncle Vernon led him by the arm to the sitting room where Dudley was watching television. He hadn't heard even the slightest bit of his parents' argument.

"Dudley, turn that television off!" Uncle Vernon snapped at his son. Dudley began to protest, and loudly too, but Uncle Vernon cut him off by waving his fat hand in a 'stop' motion. "This is very important and your mother and I believe that you should be involved in this conversation because you live under the same roof as _him_." Uncle Vernon said calmly as he pointed one very large, sausage-like finger in Harry's general direction.

"Oh," Dudley then looked amazingly happy. "Are we finally getting rid of him?" he asked his father joyfully and incredulously as if all his Christmases had come at once. Harry had no doubt that would not be true. Despite how much they seemed to loathe him, they would never do that. Harry just wasn't that lucky. But he could always dream.

"Well ..." Uncle Vernon started slowly as both Harry and Dudley's jaws dropped at the thought of where they thought the sentence was going. "In a way, yes. But it is not a permanent change. Just for ... most of the year," A million things were going through Harry's head. What did Uncle Vernon mean? _Why most of the year and not all of the year?_ Harry thought to himself anxiously.

This was beginning to sound a lot like boarding school which Harry would, no doubt, love compared to Number 4, Privet Drive. Harry saw Aunt Petunia enter the room out of the corner of his eye. He was also able to notice her pursed lips. What is going on? Harry wondered, thinking about pinching himself to see if what he was experiencing was actually just a cruel dream.

"Vernon dear, how about we start at the beginning?" Aunt Petunia asked her husband while Harry marvelled at how she could sound calm yet anxious at the same time. "With how Harry came here." Harry's jaw dropped again along with Dudley's. Aunt Petunia had addressed Harry by his own name. For the first time that Harry could remember. This was definitely something huge.

"Uh ... yes ... of course Petunia dear," Uncle Vernon said obviously rattled as well by his wife's use of Harry's name. "Now you both know that ... uh ... Harry ... was dropped off here almost ten years ago. And you know the story of how Harry's parents, Lily and James, died."

Another first. Harry had never known his parents' names before. Lily and James Potter. Those names seemed right somehow. Like they completed something within him.

"Yeah," Dudley said with a smirk directed at Harry, "They had a car crash and were both killed. But _he_ survived." Anger began to rise within Harry again but he only clenched his fists and left it at that. No point angering his aunt and uncle. He could actually get to leave and he didn't want to ruin that. Uncle Vernon looked slightly uncomfortable at what Dudley had said and shifted in his seat.

"Um ... yes that is what we have said in the past ... but ... we, uh, weren't entirely telling the truth." The anger was rising again as Uncle Vernon looked at him and said. "They were not killed in a car crash. We, well, didn't like the way they were killed so we ... made it up." That was it.

"You made it up?" Harry asked incredulously. "You tell me one thing, _one thing_ , about my parents and it's a _lie_?!"

Strangely, Uncle Vernon didn't look to be getting angry at all, obviously feeling a little guilt at what he and Aunt Petunia had done. This was something which Harry had never seen in him at all. He tried to talk but couldn't so Aunt Petunia picked up where he left off.

"We tried to keep it that way because we didn't like my sister. More to the point we didn't like her type. See she was ... different. As was your father." Aunt Petunia seemed to be talking directly to Harry at this point, completely ignoring Dudley. Harry was still very angry but seeing his aunt and uncle act this way calmed him down, albeit very slightly. They seemed genuinely ashamed and regretful of what they had done. That gave Harry at least a little bit of satisfaction. As he began to calm down it was Dudley's turn to lose it.

"You lied?!" he yelled, surprising both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. Dudley seemed to calm himself a little after that. "I always believed you and dad to be the most honest people I knew. You always tell people what you think and never hold back. But now I find out you've been lying, even if it is to Harry." At the mention of Harry's name Dudley sent a quick smirk towards him as his mother looked at the same patch of floor his father was looking at.

Harry realised what was happening. Dudley wasn't worried about his mother and father lying to him. He just didn't want Harry to know the truth about his parents! This was the lowest Dudley had ever sunk. Dudley continued.

"And you think its fine by me that you go around lying all of the time? No!" At this, Dudley stood up, turned and stormed out of the room quickly followed by Petunia. As a door slammed shut in the distance Uncle Vernon looked Harry directly in the eye.

"We will continue the conversation later. I think it best for Dudley to know as well as you so we can deal with it. So until he comes out of his room just ... go and wait in your cupboard." This was the nicest that Uncle Vernon had ever been to Harry. He almost seemed like an actual uncle and not an evil mastermind trying to destroy Harry's life. Uncle Vernon left the room and hurried up the stairs to try to convince Dudley to leave his room.

Harry wasn't far behind him going to his cupboard and laying on his bed, his thoughts swimming in his head. Leaving Privet Drive? Boarding school? No car crash? Didn't like the way they were killed? What did they think this was? A book that they could rewrite to suit what they preferred? This was Harry's life and he was only now realising that there was something more to his existence than just being a little boy under the stairs. It was obviously something big. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia never acted the way Harry saw them act then. At least not towards him.

Harry tried to work out what this conversation was leading to but he ultimately concluded that he shouldn't try and build it up in his mind because he was probably going to be disappointed. But despite what he told himself, Harry couldn't help but hope. Hope was the only thing he had left after nearly ten years with the Dursleys.

Harry left his cupboard when Aunt Petunia announced dinner was ready but when he got there Dudley was still noticeably missing. _Still sulking in his room no doubt_ , Harry thought to himself. _Selfish, lying prat_.

The three of them ate dinner in near silence as there was now even more awkwardness between Harry and his aunt and uncle. When he was finished his dinner, Harry got up and started to wash his plate.

"Leave it," Aunt Petunia said quietly. Harry was confused, but just left the plate and his utensils in the sink and moved into his cupboard where he remained until morning.

Harry did not get much sleep after the events of the previous day. He was still thinking about what was going on in Number 4 Privet Drive. There was an eerie silence throughout the house. No Dudley jumping on stairs. No Aunt Petunia banging on doors. No Uncle Vernon ranting about whatever came to his mind. Just silence. Harry got changed and left his strangely unlocked cupboard and went to the kitchen. No one was there. That was a surprise given Dudley and Uncle Vernon's love of food. Harry glanced at the clock and found that it was about breakfast time. Harry went into the sitting room where he found them all talking very quietly and he caught the end of the discussion.

"So you will be willing to listen to us if we do those things for you, Duddykins?" Aunt Petunia asked in a sickeningly sweet voice that sounded like she was talking to a one-year-old. Harry saw Dudley nod, tear streaks staining his overly large face, and look to where Harry had just walked in. Uncle Vernon noticed him as well.

"Ah, good. I was wondering where you were. We will be having the conversation tonight if all goes well. Dudley has agreed to listen to what Petunia and I have to say if we take him to an amusement park today," Uncle Vernon told Harry almost pleasantly. "But you cannot come with us. That's part of the deal. Dudley wants to take Piers and he doesn't want you there."

Dudley shot Harry a smirk and Harry wondered to himself why they needed to include Dudley in a conversation about him. It has nothing to do with Dudley. But since it needed to happen, Harry decided to just agree with everything.

"Okay Uncle Vernon. Where am I going to stay today, then?" he asked in a flat tone knowing full well where he was staying.

"We were thinking Mrs Figg would take you," Aunt Petunia said almost happily. Harry didn't hate Mrs Figg. She was certainly better than his own family. It was just her house in general. It always smelt like cabbage and there were cats everywhere. Harry was not exactly a cat person. He liked dogs more. Big black, shaggy dogs were his favourite.

Within the half-hour he was at Mrs Figg's house watching the Dursleys drive away. _Oh well_ , Harry thought, _at least I'm treated well by Mrs Figg_. Mrs Figg was a small, thin, frail looking woman who always wore old looking clothes except when it was raining and she would wear a bright yellow raincoat that she had received as a gift a few years earlier. She liked cats very much and had owned hundreds over her long life and liked to show them to Harry whenever she could.

This visit however, Mrs Figg seemed even more delighted than usual to have Harry's company and seemed very excited about Harry's upcoming eleventh birthday. Even more so than Harry was, not that that was a particularly hard feat to accomplish.

"So, you turn eleven in a few days?" Mrs Figg asked Harry with a very broad smile which seemed to make her look years younger.

"Yeah. I do. On the thirty –" Harry started before being interrupted by Mrs Figg.

"Thirty-first of July," Mrs Figg said quietly and almost with a hint of awe in her voice. Harry wondered how she knew his birthday as he had never told her before and he was certain the Dursleys wouldn't have because they barely acknowledged it as it was.

"How did you know that Mrs Figg? I don't remember telling you," Harry asked curiously. He watched as it looked like Mrs Figg bit her tongue.

"Your aunt and uncle told me," said Mrs Figg quickly, nervously stroking the orange coloured cat on her lap. "Besides, I look after you a lot so why wouldn't I know?" Harry really couldn't argue with that but still felt that she wasn't telling him something.

"Fair enough," Harry replied with a suspicious glint in his emerald green eyes. Mrs Figg began talking again to cover the tension.

"Anyway, what I was getting at is that I made you something." She got up after sitting the cat on the couch next to her and left for the kitchen where Harry heard her run into something. He began to stand to go and see if she was alright but at that moment she walked back into the room with a platter in her hands with a large chocolate cake on it. If Harry was standing he might have fainted. Never in his life had he ever been given a cake for his birthday, or at all really. The Dursleys would never do it and no one else knew. He could feel tears coming to his eyes but he forced them down as he looked at the smiling Mrs Figg put the cake on the coffee table between them and begin to cut into it. She handed Harry a slice which Harry took happily.

"Thank you," Harry replied in a whisper to Mrs Figg after being given the rather generous slice of cake. Harry was shocked that anyone could treat him so well, and so nicely. She smiled as he began to eat and savour every bite. It was wonderful. It was not often that he got to eat cake but he really enjoyed it when he did, especially this time though because he knew it was for him and no one else.

As they ate, Mrs Figg talked to Harry about a lot of things but mainly her late husband who had died about twelve years prior. It was the best conversation Harry had ever had with an adult in his entire life up to that point because she wasn't a teacher or a member of the Dursley family. She was someone who seemed to want to talk to him.

It was perhaps four hours later when he heard the Dursleys pull up outside Mrs Figg's house and Harry's heart skipped a beat. _The conversation is going to happen soon_ , Harry thought with a mixture of dread, anxiety and happiness. There was a loud knock on the door and Harry heard Aunt Petunia's high, shrill voice.

"Arabella!" _That's an interesting name_ , Harry thought. "Harry can come now! We're running a tad bit late." Aunt Petunia never liked to be off schedule because her life revolved around order. If even one thing was out of place, it became her duty to correct that error.

Arabella Figg looked at Harry with a look of sadness. Harry realised she must have to go back to being lonely again and he felt a pang of sadness at the thought of this poor old woman alone.

"Time to go Harry. I hope you can come and stay again. If you liked the cake, I will make you another when you come over next. You look underfed," Mrs Figg told him with a slight smile.

"I really did enjoy it. Thank you, Mrs Figg." With that, Harry opened the front door and walked to the car, got in and listened to Dudley taunt him about missing the amusement park. Harry was on the verge of telling him about the cake but he thought he had better stay on his aunt and uncle's good side.

He and Dudley were both ushered into the living room and Aunt Petunia motioned to two recliners for them to sit in. Not a word had been said by her or her husband since leaving Mrs Figg's house. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia sat on the sofa opposite the two boys, but both sat close to the edge. Uncle Vernon looked like he was having trouble working out what to say first. It was five minutes before Uncle Vernon decided what to say. He sighed and looked directly at Harry, right into his emerald green eyes with his beady blue eyes. Harry's pulse hadn't slowed since sitting down and his stomach was churning.

"Harry," said Uncle Vernon somewhat reluctantly and with a hint of venom in his voice. "Your Aunt Petunia and I, as you know, haven't been truthful to you and we feel now is the time for you to know. For our sake as much as yours." _Ah_ , thought Harry, _there is something in it for you. Figures_. There was a long, awkward pause while Uncle Vernon swallowed and motioned for Aunt Petunia to talk and she nodded. Taking more time still she looked torn. Harry looked at a strangely silent Dudley who was admiring a toy he had picked up at the theme park. He looked back at Aunt Petunia expectantly when she finally sighed, almost seeming to gag as she got the courage to tell him.

"Harry. You are a ... wizard."


	3. The Truth

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER TWO —

 _The Truth_

Harry was speechless. He was stunned. Surely this wasn't real. Surely it was another lie. Never had Aunt Petunia said anything so preposterous in her entire life. _This has to be a lie. Or a dream. Maybe I misheard_ , Harry thought, attempting to make sense of what he had just heard come out of his aunt's mouth.

While he was processing this, he heard the toy drop from Dudley's fat hands and heard him gasp, a sound which he didn't hear very often from his cousin. Harry looked at Uncle Vernon who was staring intently at the floor in front of him and Aunt Petunia's lips were pursed once again. She looked as though the words were physically painful for her to say.

"I'm a ... What did you ... Who told you ... What?" Harry stammered. At the same time Dudley looked like he was going to be sick. Normally he wouldn't ask questions, as he was forbidden from doing so, but, at this moment, he didn't really care. If what they were saying was true, how could they forbid him from asking questions?

"You are ... a wizard. You're ... magical," Aunt Petunia replied with slight hatred exuding from her words. When she saw Harry's confused look she sighed and continued. "Magic is real. Not the stuff that is shown on television and such, but actual magic. Like what's in some books. Your father was a wizard and your mother, my sister, was a witch."

This was not really helping Harry at all and Uncle Vernon noticed.

"Petunia, dear, that _is_ rather vague. Perhaps it would be easiest to just show him the letter." As Petunia pulled an old envelope from her jacket pocket, Uncle Vernon looked at Harry with a look of utter disgust. "I don't know the story very well, as your aunt does not like to talk about her sister or ... her kind, so you should feel grateful she is willing to do so now."

Aunt Petunia looked at Harry and handed him the letter, a strange look on her face.

"Before you open it I think you should know about some of what is written in this letter." This was obviously hard for Aunt Petunia as she looked like she had swallowed a lemon as she talked. Dudley was still silent, and shocked, as she began "When my sister, Lily, turned eleven, her life, as well as my own, changed. She received a letter from a school. 'Hogwarts', it was called. It told her that she was a witch and that she had been accepted at this school to learn magic. At first our parents thought it was some kind of a joke but then the woman who brought the letter to Lily did something thought to be impossible. She ... she changed into a cat."

Aunt Petunia shuddered at the memory. Dudley squealed a little bit. Uncle Vernon jumped off the sofa slightly and looked at his wife with a pale look on his face. Harry merely stared, his jaw almost hitting the ground. _Surely Aunt Petunia is joking. No one can do that. It's impossible. This must be a dream. Wake up._ Aunt Petunia took a minute to get composed and continued.

"After a few more of those ... displays, this woman had convinced my parents that wizards and witches did, indeed, exist but only in secret. This witch informed us that the school term would start in seven months and that she would be back in 5 months to take Lily to get her school supplies. Our parents were so proud. 'A witch in the family! Isn't it wonderful?' they would say on an almost daily basis. I knew what she really was though. A freak!" Aunt Petunia spat the last two words out as if they were mouthwash. Harry felt his anger rising again although he couldn't really think of any reason why Aunt Petunia wouldn't actually think that. It was freaky. Harry stayed silent and to his surprise Dudley spoke up.

"You – you have to be ... lying again. Wizards don't exist. Only in stories. Fairy tales," he said in a hoarse whisper. He was staring at his mother with a strange look on his face that Harry couldn't really place.

"No, Duddy, I'm telling the truth," she then regarded both Harry and Dudley as she posed the next question to them. "Surely you have noticed some strange things that Harry can do?"

Harry gave it some thought and realised that she was right. Just over twenty-four hours ago Dudley had mysteriously lost all of his clothes when Harry was angry. Then it dawned on him that most of the things that he got into trouble for were because of this. He never wanted those things to happen so, obviously, they were out of his control. They blamed him for something they wouldn't tell him about and even worse, something he couldn't help. He let the anger rise up into his throat before speaking again.

"You mean to tell me that almost all of the times I've been in trouble from you and gotten punished were because of magic? Something you knew about but never told me? Something I can't control?" He spoke, not even trying to control the anger and resentment he felt towards the Dursleys at that moment. Uncle Vernon's face went purple.

"Do you think we ever wanted you here? Do you think we liked what you are? What do you expect us to do? Not do anything? As far as we were concerned we could beat it out of you!" Uncle Vernon raised his voice above normal to say this while Harry shrunk into his chair, his anger quickly receding into fear. "But just yesterday I realised that there was a simple solution to our problems. We may not like what you are in the slightest but we definitely do not want you under our roof if it won't stop. According to that letter you are holding, what you are doing is 'accidental' and you need to learn to 'control' magic otherwise it keeps happening. You're dangerous to Dudley and to us! We know that you have your eleventh birthday soon so you will receive the same letter as your mother did when she turned eleven. Originally we had planned to make you stay here but I have come to the conclusion that it would benefit all of us if you went. Now read that ruddy letter so we can get this over with."

Uncle Vernon was still purple when Harry began to take out the paper inside the letter and read it to himself, his hands shaking slightly. Whether it was from fear, excitement or apprehension, Harry couldn't tell.

 _Dear Mr and Mrs Dursley,_

 _You are probably, as of right now, unaware of what has happened to Lily and James Potter or even what is currently happening in the wizarding world at this moment. Lily and James, sadly, were murdered._

.

Those last six words almost brought tears to his eyes, even though he did not know his parents.

"My parents were murdered?" he asked angrily, looking at his aunt and uncle with a furious look on his face. "That doesn't sound like a car crash!" He was absolutely disgusted. When he realised that his Aunt and Uncle were not going to reply to him he went back to reading.

 _We do know who the culprit was but he was also destroyed that very same night._

Harry was pleased to read that.

 _Harry has no other family and it is best for him to stay with blood relatives right now. At least until further arrangements can be arranged and we find out more about what happened in Godric's Hollow. I hope you do not mind this intrusion as I know that you and the Potters were not on very good terms but I do sincerely hope that you can find it in your heart to raise this boy like your own. I do not wish to worry you any further or burden you any more than I know I already have. I only have a few things more to write about Harry's future._

 _I understand that you are aware of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the purpose it serves within the wizarding community. When Harry turns eleven he will receive a letter from the school informing him of his acceptance and will also enclose a list of necessities._

 _I am aware that you do not exactly like our community so I will be sure to send a Professor along with the letter to help Harry get all of his necessities. When Harry does go to Hogwarts we can then discuss what we should do in terms of living arrangements for him so that it is more comfortable for him and also for you. There are any number of witches and wizards who would take Harry in if you no longer felt capable of keeping him. But this is long in the future. Almost ten years in fact._

 _However, almost immediately, you will start to realise that Harry does indeed have magic inside him as things will start happening, though it will only start to become extremely prevalent when he turns seven years of age. Do not be alarmed as this is all accidental and he could not possibly control magic at that age. That is one reason Hogwarts is around, so children can learn to control their magic. If they do not do so, the consequences could be extreme._

 _Words cannot express how extremely sorry I am for your loss, although I do sincerely hope you enjoy what you gain from this tragic incident._

 _Yours Sincerely,_

 _Albus Dumbledore._

Harry stared at the letter, so many thoughts going through his head. It was true. He was a wizard. He would be leaving Privet Drive. Perhaps for good. _But my parents were murdered_ , Harry thought to himself, _and they told me different_. He glared at his aunt and uncle who were now looking at him with almost calm looks on their faces. Harry felt anger rising again.

"So, this is your way of telling me to get lost is it? Too good to pass up?" Harry asked angrily directing death stares at both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon who now both had creepy smiles on their ugly faces.

"No point denying it. Yes, that's what this is. But you can't honestly say you don't like the idea of leaving here. But, yes, this is only to get what we want," Uncle Vernon said sickeningly gleefully. Harry began to think and it occurred to him that he didn't care what their reasons where if it meant he could leave, he liked it. A smile cracked across his face which made Uncle Vernon's and Aunt Petunia's own smiles fade slightly.

"You know, Uncle Vernon, you're absolutely right. I don't want to be here any more than you want me to be. We both get something. But I do have a few questions for you, Aunt Petunia," Harry said coolly which made Uncle Vernon flinch slightly.

"Go ahead," she replied warily.

"First of all, when does school start?" Harry genuinely wanted to know so he could count down the days.

"When Lily went, the train always left on September the first," Aunt Petunia answered matter-of-factly, as if she knew everything. _A train? I would have thought it would be cooler than that_ , Harry thought feeling slightly disappointed.

"I guess that it would be like boarding school, so my next question is, when are the breaks? Christmas and Easter?" Harry had no intention of visiting his family, but it would be nice to know.

"It is like boarding school, yes," Aunt Petunia said. "And there is only a two week break over Christmas. None at Easter. At least Lily never came home for them if there were."

"When does school finish for the year?" Harry asked.

"The third week in June, some time. It was a different day each year," Aunt Petunia replied. "Very similar to your current schooling timetable."

"So, that means I will be away for...nine out of twelve months of the year?" Harry asked happily.

"That is correct." Aunt Petunia looked angry that Harry was happy but she said nothing. Harry thought of another question.

"Are you paying for it?" Harry regretted asking when he saw the disgusted looks on Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon's faces. They did not like that idea in the slightest.

"I should think not!" Vernon shouted, "We kept you sheltered and it was your parents who wanted you there so they better not expect us to pay for you!" He was purple in the face again. Harry knew not to pursue the matter further but instead asked another question.

"Someone will be coming to this house on my birthday to take me to get what I need to go to Hogwarts?" Aunt Petunia nodded but didn't say anything, clearly still angry at Harry's last question. "Then what will happen? Will I come back here for a month or go with them somewhere? I mean, I don't know a thing about all of this." Harry really wanted to leave Privet Drive as soon as possible.

"I don't know what will happen but, chances are, you will remain here until your school term begins. Then, with any luck, you won't have to come back here for anything at all," Aunt Petunia said with a huff.

"Okay, I'm done with the questions about this. I suppose that you'll want to say something now?" He asked both his aunt and uncle. Dudley was now sitting low in his recliner not really comprehending the situation. _This could be fun_.

"Uh ... yes," Uncle Vernon started and cleared his throat. Harry knew that all too well. He was getting a lecture, "Now. We bent our own rules by telling you all of this so you had better be grateful, boy."

 _Ah, back to 'boy' now am I?_ Harry thought wryly.

"We still don't like ... your lot and what they can do. So we will have restrictions. The following words are banned from use in this house unless you are given specific instructions to say you can use them. Magic, Hogwarts, wand, spells, charms, potions -" Uncle Vernon stopped when Dudley suddenly cut in.

"Wait a minute. Why don't you want him to talk about it? I wouldn't mind," Dudley said with a slightly excited look on his face. Harry's jaw fell open. Dudley was clearly defying his parents and almost siding with Harry. In doing so he was basically saying he wants something to do with Harry that didn't have anything to do with fists. It was obvious that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were stunned as well.

"Uh ... well ... you see … uh," Uncle Vernon was clearly lost for words and was confused, as was Aunt Petunia, "Well uh ... your mother. She, um ..."

Aunt Petunia looked at her husband sharply and said quietly, "Vernon, the last time I heard Dudley was interested in anything this much was when he worked out how to work the television remote. Normally he doesn't even care. Maybe we could be a bit lenient, here. We both know he isn't ... like that so what harm could it do?" Uncle Vernon exploded.

"WHAT HARM COULD IT DO? HE COULD HURT, MAIM OR KILL DUDLEY!" Harry flinched and decided something in the spur of the moment.

"Uncle Vernon. I don't think I would. Hurt Dudley that is. In fact," Harry looked at Dudley with a smile which seemed to physically hurt his face to do. Harry had not once smiled at Dudley before. Not in a good way at least, "It might be fun to have someone to talk to about it. If you don't like talking about ... what I am and what I can do then I don't have to around you. I'll just talk to Dudley about it. Even let him read books about it if I get them and if he wants to." _That's a long shot_ , Harry thought. Dudley was actually smiling a smile that didn't seem evil.

"I really want to, Dad. I mean, there's a whole different world out there. They can do cool things. Why wouldn't I be interested?" Dudley was actually being sincere for once. Harry was stunned. "And, yes, I would read the books as well."

That statement had a massive effect. Considering Harry wasn't even sure Dudley could read up until that point, this stunned him, and everyone else, in the room. Dudley looked defiantly at his parents, causing the both of them to look at each other.

"Vernon," Harry heard Petunia mutter as if she was going to burst with pride and with tears standing in her eyes. "He wants to read. And a book, no less. Vernon, we absolutely cannot say no. This could be the single best thing to happen to him. I still don't like _it_ but if my Duddikins is willing to do all that because of it, I am willing to let him. You and I both know he isn't that good in school. What if this fixes all that?" Uncle Vernon nodded reluctantly and began to speak in an authoritarian tone.

"Fine. Dudley, you are the only person in this family who can talk to _him_ about _that_ ," he said reluctantly. "If you, or he, mention it to us we will only give you one warning. If you do it a second time you will no longer be allowed to talk about it at all."

Dudley looked extremely happy at this concession on Uncle Vernon's part. But there was a niggling doubt in the back of Harry's mind about Dudley. He could only hope that it didn't become any more than just a niggling doubt. Harry had never been able to trust him before, but he felt strangely compelled to trust him this time. Even after everything Dudley had done to him in the past.

"However," said Uncle Vernon with a loud voice causing Dudley's smile to fade very quickly, "you are, under no circumstances to go with him on that trip on his birthday. I know you were going to ask because you always ask us to do things for you, and you mother, being the lovely person she is," _Ha_! Harry thought to himself trying to conceal a smirk, "cannot say no to you. So there is no way you are going." Dudley looked a little disappointed but still seemed in high spirits.

"Okay Dad," he said in a happy tone that sounded, for once, like it wasn't forced.

"Now _you_ ," Uncle Vernon really emphasised 'you' like it was some evil word. "You will not harm Dudley at all. If you do, you will be out of here in the blink of an eye whether it is safe for you or not. Do you understand?" he barked at Harry who nodded quickly. "If you wish to speak about any of this to Petunia or I you say 'ability' instead of 'magic' and 'school' instead of 'Hogwarts'. We are being lenient enough to allow you to say such words to Dudley but we will not be with ourselves. Petunia is still traumatized from –" He was cut off by Aunt Petunia.

"VERNON!" she shrieked, making Harry's ears ring.

Uncle Vernon looked embarrassed realising his mistake. He cleared his throat and said, "Okay then. Off you go. Discussion over. Do what you want to. We will call you for dinner," he said all of this very quickly and Harry was lucky to catch all of it.

Harry and Dudley got up instantly and left the room. Harry headed towards his cupboard but as he opened the door he felt a hand on his shoulder. Harry flinched waiting for something to happen to him but nothing did. He turned around to see Dudley looking concerned.

"Why'd you do that?" he asked Harry.

"Well, the last time you grabbed my shoulder you spun me around and punched my nose and snapped my glasses. Plus, it isn't really a good thing when anyone touches me in this house," Harry pointed out and Dudley lowered his head in something that Harry thought may be remorse.

"Yeah," he said slowly. "I guess I've been a pretty big git to you haven't I?"

"Yeah. You have," Harry replied a little quicker and angrier than he actually wanted to.

"Well I hope I can make it up to you. I really think what you are is actually pretty cool. I don't care what my parents say," he added with a wry grin. "Anyway, let's forget the cupboard for now and head up to my room. I wanna talk to you and I think it would be best to be somewhere where they can't hear us."

Harry was still very wary of the 'new' Dudley who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Was this the same kid who had kicked him in the ribs just over twenty-four hours ago? Would this all turn out to be a plan of Dudley's to get him alone? It didn't seem at all possible, but there he was, walking up to Dudley's room with him. Going to talk about magic. _This is weird_.

When they got to his rather large room Dudley shut his door and sat on his bed, causing it to creak quite loudly. He told Harry to grab a chair from near his desk to sit on and Harry did so cautiously, still feeling the effects of the conversation and what had happened with Dudley. He watched Dudley's hands closely, waiting for the moment they lashed out at him.

"So, you really had no idea that you were a wizard?" Dudley blurted out. Harry actually laughed. Harry didn't know if Dudley had ever heard a laugh like that from Harry. Actually, Harry wasn't sure this particular type of laugh had ever escaped his lips.

"No Dudley. I didn't. I mean, I knew weird things happened around me. And they seemed to be _very_ weird things but I never once thought, 'Hey, maybe I'm a wizard'," Harry replied laughing again. "It still feels weird. And you really didn't know? It would make more sense for you to know seeing as it was your parents hiding it from me."

"No. Not at all. I knew that Mum and Dad didn't like you but I had no idea why," Dudley admitted. "To be honest, I never really hated you at all when we were young. My parents made me. I actually liked the idea of having a cousin live with me, especially since I don't have a brother or sister. But they didn't like you and whenever I got near you when we were very young they always used to pull me away and get angry with me for going near you. I felt like I had to believe what they told me. I guess I just realised exactly what they were like today. They always praised me whenever I did anything to hurt you. I guess that helped them get what they wanted."

 _Wow. An admission of guilt from Dudley. And also an admission that he actually likes me. And more than a sentence out of his mouth. Wow_ , Harry thought. The biggest shock was that it all actually made sense.

"I guess I never thought of it that way," Harry admitted. "I just thought you just hated me like they did. I don't remember much of when we were both very young. Maybe that's why. In a strange way, I'm glad you feel this way because it means I have one less thing to fear in this house."

Dudley looked at the floor in front of his feet and then looked up at Harry.

"I'm sorry. For everything. I don't think my parents will ever say that, but I want to try at least." He held out a hand. Harry flinched away as a reflex but eventually, very cautiously, shook it. Dudley looked relieved when he did so.

"What a day!" Harry exclaimed cheerfully as he let go of his cousin's hand, much to the surprise of Dudley and even himself.

"Why do you sound so happy? I mean that wasn't _all_ good down there," he pointed out and Harry just smiled.

"It's more than just that. I mean, when I got to Mrs Figg's today she had a cake made for my birthday. And I had never told her the date. You know better than anyone that I've never had a birthday cake before, let alone anyone really seem excited about it. Say, do you think your parents would have mentioned my birthday to Mrs Figg?" Dudley shook his head sadly. "I didn't think so. Strange. Anyway, and then I find out I am a wizard and I find out the truth about everything, well almost everything, and now I actually feel like I have a cousin." Dudley grinned at him.

"I can see why you would like today a load more than any other day. And just so you know, I'm excited about your birthday this year." To Harry's quizzical look Dudley laughed and added, "Because you're getting all of your Hogwarts stuff. Don't tell me you forgot already!" Dudley laughed again and this time, so did Harry.

"No, I didn't," Harry replied after recovering from the fit of laughter he was having with Dudley, something he never thought would ever happen. "Just getting used to you being, well, different, that's all."

"You know something Harry? I'm going to ask my parents to bake you a cake for your birthday. And only partly because I want a bit too," He laughed again. "I'm sure they'll say yes to me."

"You know something Dudley? That would be brilliant!"

For the first time in his life Harry Potter actually felt as if he belonged there in Number 4 Privet Drive. For almost 10 years he had felt like he was trapped in his own personal hell but now he felt like there was a glimmer of hope for him. He would be leaving the Dursleys' in just over a month. Yet now that Dudley was treating him better he felt strangely conflicted about that. He still wanted to go because he still despised the place but he wanted to stay because he knew that Dudley was just coming around. His life was definitely going in a new direction.


	4. The New World

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER THREE —

 _The New World_

The remaining days of the two weeks before his birthday were some of the best days of Harry's life, not that he had that much to compare it to. Harry's life had changed for the better ever since his aunt and uncle's revelations. Well, parts of it did. He and Dudley weren't just civil to each other, but they were actually spending a lot of time together and becoming rather close. It had been slightly unnerving at first but Harry eventually got used to it. Dudley had even told Harry that he was going to try and change, starting with his attitude towards school. He told Harry that he had never really liked school, but he was beginning to see that it might be more important than he knew. He also claimed that because his parents always praised his work, he never felt the need to do any better than he already did.

This was surprising to Harry as he didn't really think Dudley was capable of change of such magnitude, but he was perfectly happy for Dudley to prove him wrong. After so many years of hatred it was a welcome change to see Dudley actually trying to be nice to him, and anything that would further that was more than welcome.

Harry had always known Dudley to be surrounded by a large group of friends at school. His gang, such as it was, was well known throughout the school as the group you shouldn't cross. Their primary target was always Harry Potter. Dudley, being the largest and stupidest, was the leader of this gang so he orchestrated pretty much everything that they did. At least as much as his small brain could, but now that he was beginning to change he was beginning to see many things differently.

"Harry, I've been doing some thinking," Dudley said three days before Harry's birthday. The two were in Dudley's room, as they had often been recently.

"Whoa, Dudley. Slow down. You don't want the world to collapse do you?" Harry joked before they both laughed.

"Seriously though, Harry. I've been thinking about my friends," Harry had groaned at the thought of them. In particular Piers Polkiss who used to hold Harry while Dudley pummelled into him. Dudley noticed the groan and continued. "I know, Harry, and I'm sorry. Anyway, I was thinking and I realised, I don't really know any of them. Kind of like I didn't know you before you found out you were a wizard. And since then I know more about you than I do about all of my friends combined. I've been friends with you for close to, what, two weeks and friends with them for over 5 years. Why do you think that is Harry? I mean, shouldn't all my friendships be like this?" Harry shrugged sadly.

"I dunno Dudley. I mean, you and them pretty much made sure I didn't have any friends at school," Dudley bowed his head and Harry continued. "I don't really care anymore. At least not as much as I used to," Harry leaned back and laid his head on the wall. "I don't know. Maybe you aren't friends with them for the right reasons."

Dudley looked thoughtful for a while. After he thought about it he sighed and said. "You're right. I'm only friends with Piers and all them 'cause I wanted someone to back me up and, to be honest, they're as scared of me as the kids we push around are. But what should I do?"

Harry rubbed the back of his neck while he thought.

"Make new friends, I guess," he said, feeling uncomfortable with the conversation. Talking to Dudley about his friends had always been a recipe for disaster in the past. "You're going to a different school this year so it shouldn't be too hard. Just make friends with someone not like Piers or the rest of those gits you normally hang around with." Dudley sighed.

"I know you're right, Harry," he said, slightly pained. "It'll just be hard that's all. Haven't had to make new friends in ages."

That discussion really changed Harry's opinion on Dudley. It was good to find out that, at least in some ways, Dudley was insecure just the same as he was. It was a relief in an odd way.

He had 'the dream' again the night before his birthday. It was the first time he had had the dream since learning about his wizarding abilities. The strange thing about it this time was that it was somewhat clearer. Not a great deal clearer, but enough so that certain aspects of the dream were easier to make out. The old man's nose and eyes were now visible. His nose was very crooked and looked as if it had been broken one too many times. His eyes however were a brilliant blue and sparkled like stars. The look in the old man's eyes was somewhat calming. It was a look that almost said, "everything will be okay."

This time, when he walked away Harry could see two other people there with the old man. He was able to make one out to be a woman wearing a very floppy, and pointed hat and a dark green robe, or something vaguely similar. The other person was a giant of a man standing next to a motorcycle. Harry could distinctly make out a long, black beard and dark matted, uncombed hair. This time instead of hearing the motorcycle go away, he saw it fly away. _Fly away_.

Then came the familiar green light and high pitched laughter before he awoke with a start reaching for his glasses with one hand and his lightning bolt scar with the other. _Maybe when I get to Hogwarts someone can do something about this_ , he thought miserably, not really getting his hopes up.

Then another thought popped into his head. _July 31st_! For the first time in his life, Harry was actually happy about his birthday. He sat up and began to quickly get dressed and ready for the day. He even managed to nearly put a shirt on instead of pants. He bolted out of the cupboard, which no longer remained locked at any time, though Harry didn't know why, and then walked as calmly as he could towards the kitchen. Dudley was up and helping his mother make breakfast, which Harry had never seen happen before in his life. To say Harry was stunned would be an understatement.

"Morning Harry! Happy Birthday!" Dudley said excitedly, "Look! I'm cooking you breakfast!" Harry heard Aunt Petunia groan but she continued to work, obviously being coerced into helping her son. Harry had long since given up on his aunt and uncle when it came to anything to do with him at all. Uncle Vernon was sitting in his chair, reading the paper at the table which Dudley motioned for Harry to sit down at. _Another first_ , Harry thought incredulously.

Dudley was a surprisingly good cook, even if Aunt Petunia did help. When they had both finished, Dudley even offered Harry seconds which he readily accepted and, upon receiving them, wolfed them down as if he had never eaten anything before in his life. Never before had he ever eaten seconds at the Dursley household's table. Sometimes he might be able to sneak some, but never had he been offered any.

Following breakfast Harry and Dudley raced up to Dudley's room to talk about the day's activities to come. They talked for nearly two hours before the doorbell rang and they both stared at each other grinning widely. They wordlessly got up and ran down to the living room where Petunia gave Harry a dirty, hate-filled look before opening to door to greet their visitor.

Harry was slightly disappointed because the man looked, well, normal. He looked to be in his thirties, was reasonably tall and had short dark hair but had a bald spot on the back of his head which Harry saw while he turned to greet Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. He was wearing a dark black jacket and jeans with white sneakers. Harry thought he wasn't the right guy until the man looked towards Harry and looked straight towards his forehead. _He must have seen my scar_ , Harry thought. _But why would he know about that_?

"Yep, you are the right one then," the man said to a very confused Harry. "My name is Quirinus Quirrell. I teach at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I used to teach the subject of Muggle Studies but, as of this year, I will be teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. Not that you need it, eh, Mr Potter?" The man looked at Harry with a smile when he said that but Harry still looked quizzical. The man seemed to notice but he brushed it off. "Mr Potter, you will have to refer to all of your teachers at Hogwarts as Professor. So you will have to call me Professor Quirrell while we are out and about today as well."

"Okay. I will. Um … Professor Quirrell, a lot of what you just said at first went right over my head," Harry admitted to the wizard standing in front of him.

"I expect nothing less, Mr Potter. You were raised by Muggles after all. I can't expect you to know too much about _our_ world," Aunt Petunia huffed but when Professor Quirrell looked at her she looked away and grabbed Uncle Vernon's arm a little too quickly. Harry cocked his head at them slightly before looking back to Professor Quirrell.

"Uh, Professor? Muggles?" Harry looked up at the professor who kept his face surprisingly still.

"'Muggle' is a term we use for people with no magical abilities at all. Like your aunt and uncle and, I am assuming based on the family, your cousin," Professor Quirrell answered in an unemotional tone which Harry only then realised he had used during the whole conversation. Dudley then piped up.

"Can you show us some magic Professor?" he asked eagerly before Harry nudged him in the ribs as if to say 'don't say that!'.

"Ah, don't worry Mr Potter. Yes, normally it is the student asking the question but it really doesn't matter who asks. It is _always_ , inevitably, asked," Professor Quirrell said, with the slightest hint of amusement in his voice. "Of course I can ... I'm sorry I don't know your name."

"Dudley," he said very quickly.

Professor Quirrell pulled out a feather from the inside of his jacket pocket and gave it to Dudley. He saw the looks on Dudley's parents' faces and said, "Don't worry. The spell I am going to be casting can be toned down so it doesn't hurt him at all." They still looked terrified as Dudley held the feather in his right hand while Professor Quirrell pointed his wand at Dudley and said, " _Expelliarmus_."

The feather flew out of Dudley's hand and into Professor Quirrell's. Aunt Petunia shrieked when she saw the red light hurtle towards her son and Harry thought he heard Uncle Vernon yelp like a dog. Harry was hardly paying attention because he felt as if he knew that particular spell. _How could I?_ He asked himself.

Dudley was clapping with a wide grin on his face. His parents looked relieved yet still very anxious and angry.

"What else can you do?" Dudley asked quickly.

He pointed his wand next at the sofa next to him and did a slight hand movement and said, " _Wingardium Leviosa_." The sofa jerked slightly and then it left the floor, rising towards the roof. Aunt Petunia let out a loud gasp and put her hands around her mouth until Professor Quirrell returned the sofa to where he had found it exactly as it was. Dudley had gone into full blown applause. Harry was blown away. Someone had just made a sofa fly. Professor Quirrell then reached into his jacket again but this time pulled out a letter and turned to Harry.

"Here you go. This is what you really need to see. Read it aloud so your relatives can hear it as well," Professor Quirrell said, while Harry felt a strange elation at being able to speak the words forbidden by his aunt and uncle.

 _HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

 _Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore_

 _(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

 _Dear Mr Potter,_

 _We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

 _Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _Minerva McGonagall_

 _Deputy Headmistress_

There were a lot of things in there that Harry did not understand at all. _What's a Mugwump? We await your owl?_ Harry could tell there was going to be a lot about the wizarding world that he did not know. He gave that letter to Dudley to read as he read the second page.

 _HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

Uniform

 _First-year students will require:_

 _1\. Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

 _2\. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

 _3\. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

 _4\. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

 _Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags_

Set Books

 _All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by _Miranda Goshawk_

A History of Magic by _Bathilda Bagshot_

Magical Theory by _Adalbert Waffling_

A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by _Emeric Switch_

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by _Phyllida Spore_

Magical Drafts and Potions by _Arsenius Jigger_

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by _Newt Scamander_

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by _Quentin Trimble_

Other Equipment

 _1 wand_

 _1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

 _1 set glass or crystal phials_

 _1 telescope_

 _1 set brass scales_

 _Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad_

 _PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST-YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS_

The first thing that came to Harry's mind he also said aloud.

"There are actually broomsticks that fly?"

Professor Quirrell laughed a hollow laugh at that and Dudley looked at him with his mouth open.

"Of course there are, Mr Potter. How do you expect they play Quidditch?" Harry frowned wondering what Quidditch was. "Don't worry, Mr Potter, I am fully aware that you don't know what Quidditch is. I was simply making a joke at your expense. Although if you are anything like your father was you will definitely grow to love Quidditch," Quirrell said with a thoughtful look on his face.

Harry reread that part of the letter before giving it to Dudley to read who read it with an incredulous look on his face the whole time. When Dudley returned the letter, Professor Quirrell looked at Harry expectantly.

"Well then, are you prepared to leave? We don't really have too much time. At least it won't take long to get where we are going, however," he said.

"Exactly where _are_ we going sir?" Harry asked Professor Quirrell politely.

"Diagon Alley," Professor Quirrell said simply as if that was a good enough answer.

"Oh. Okay," Harry said meekly, turning to Dudley. "Well, I guess I'll see you when I get back then. You can go through my stuff with me." Dudley looked very excited at that. So much so that he looked as if he could burst. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia however were pouting angrily and had been since their sofa floated to the roof of their house.

"Now, we can very easily Apparate from here to Diagon Alley but I know you haven't had any experience with either Apparition or Flooing before," Professor Quirrell was thinking aloud while Harry tried to work out even half of what he had just said. "No, Apparition is much safer because Flooing could lead you anywhere if you get it wrong, and Muggle-raised students usually get it wrong the first time." He turned to face the Dursleys. "This can be rather loud, especially when it involves two people so if I were you I would block your ears. Grab my arm Mr Potter." Harry didn't know what was going on but reluctantly grabbed Professor Quirrell's arm just below the elbow. "Be prepared. The first time can be rather … disorientating."

Professor Quirrell then spun on the spot and as soon as he did so, Harry saw the Dursley's home disappear. He felt as if he was being sucked up a tube and a world of colour surrounded him before his feet seemed to hit solid ground again. He felt a queasiness in his stomach but he had felt a lot worse before. He quickly gathered his bearings and the room stopped spinning.

"Normally on their first time people don't land well like that and are usually throwing up as well. It's almost like you have done it before," Professor Quirrell said suspiciously. It was at this point that Harry looked around and saw where he was. It looked amazing. There were shops everywhere and people wandering around with robes of all colours on carrying a large variety of objects that Harry couldn't even describe.

"This, Mr Potter, is Diagon Alley. It is here that the majority of the Wizarding population of England flock to get their supplies for either school or everyday life," Professor Quirrell said, his words making the place even more amazing than it already seemed in Harry's head. "It has been around for a very long time, and is one of the only places in Britain that people in our world can go about their own business without fear of being discovered by Muggles."

There were colours everywhere and people seemed to like everyone they met. He saw quite a few shops as he glanced around. He made sure to read their names. _Eeylops Owl Emporium_ , _Flourish and Blotts_ , _Madam Malkin's Robes For All Occasions_ and, what was instantly his favourite, _Ollivander's Wand Shop_. He couldn't wait to go and have a look in all of them.

"First off we need to get you some money. We will need to go to Gringotts Wizarding Bank to do that," Professor Quirrell said, grabbing Harry's shoulder and moving him in the right direction.

"But Professor, I don't have any money at all and I didn't even know I was a wizard until two weeks ago. How will going to a bank help?" Harry asked sadly, looking down at his old tattered shoes.

"Before your parents died they set up a trust fund for you to use over the course of your seven years at Hogwarts if anything should happen to them before you turned eleven. I am led to believe that there is a sizable amount of money in there for your own use over the course of the next seven years, even outside of school," Professor Quirrell said with a slight smile as a very large beautifully white building came into Harry's view. Harry could read the golden writing near the top of the building. _Gringotts_. Harry's pulse quickened even more than when he first saw Diagon Alley. This building held the first link Harry ever had with his mother and father other than Aunt Petunia, who he didn't really count.

As he walked through the huge brown doors there was another set of doors with a golden plaque on it which read:

 _Enter, stranger, but take heed_

 _Of what awaits the sin of greed,_

 _For those who take, but do not earn,_

 _Must pay most dearly in their turn,_

 _So if you seek beneath our floors_

 _A treasure that was never yours,_

 _Thief, you have been warned, beware_

 _Of finding more than treasure there._

"Whats that about?" Harry asked with a confused look on his face.

"It is basically saying 'rob us and die'. Some say there are actually dragons down there protecting the higher profile vaults," Professor Quirrell replied almost offhandedly. "I'm not sure if it's true or not. More than likely it was a ruse conjured by the more wealthy families to further protect their assets."

"Dragons?" Harry asked incredulously. "Dragons actually exist?"

"Oh my, yes," Professor Quirrell said with a strangely nervous look on his face. "I ran into a Welsh Green while roaming the country during some time off years ago. That was not fun at all. I barely got away. I still have a scar on my left shoulder where it got me."

Harry shuddered and kept walking. When he got through that set of doors he found himself in a very large room full of papers and desks with something sitting at each of them. They were brown-skinned and very short. They all seemed to have thinning grey hair and long pointy ears. He heard Professor Quirrell beside him huff at the sight of them.

"Goblins," he spat. "Foul creatures. Very smart, shrewd and economically minded and the only things you can trust with your money but still, absolutely foul. Never mess with a goblin if you can avoid it. They'll stab you in the back just as easily as look at you."

They continued walking through the large hall and Harry marvelled at the creatures working there. They all seemed to work very quickly, even though Harry was certain he would not understand one bit of what they were doing. It was only when they reached the end of the room that Harry looked away from the workers and at the Goblin at the head desk.

"We are here to make a withdrawal from Mr Harry Potter's vault." Professor Quirrell told the Goblin in a very formal voice. The goblin slowly looked towards Harry and spoke in a surprisingly low voice.

"Do you have your key Mr Harry Potter?" The Goblin asked Harry while staring deep into Harry's emerald green eyes.

"I have it," Professor Quirrell announced, pulling a small golden key out of his jacket pocket and handing it over to the Goblin, who looked it over for a moment.

"Griphook is the manager of Vault 687 and will take you there." The Goblin gave the key to another Goblin, who Harry assumed was the one he called Griphook.

"This way please," the one called Griphook said in a higher pitched voice than the other, but still sounding slightly gruff, as he led them towards a large door. When Griphook opened the door all Harry could see was darkness. And then, as Griphook stepped through, the place lit up and Harry was able to see a rather large cart. He began to wonder to himself exactly what the cart was there for. It reminded him of what Dudley had told him a rollercoaster was like. He didn't have to wonder for too long as Griphook stepped in and said to Professor Quirrell and Harry, "Get in."

When Harry stepped into the cart, he saw Griphook sitting next to a lever of sorts and wondered what it was for and why in the world they were in a cart. When Professor Quirrell finally sat, Griphook pulled the lever and the cart sped off so quickly that it was a wonder it could stay on the rails. The cart was faster than anything Harry had ever seen or felt. There were so many twists and turns and drops that Harry did not anticipate in the slightest. There was not much to be seen as the scenery whizzed by too fast, though Harry could have sworn he saw flames in the distance in front of them at one point. _A dragon?_ Harry wondered amazedly. After perhaps five minutes the cart abruptly stopped. Harry thought that the whole experience had been amazingly fun.

Griphook stepped out of the cart followed by Harry and a very nauseated looking Professor Quirrell. It appeared that he had the opposite experience to the one Harry had had. When he set foot outside of the cart Harry suddenly felt extremely cold. He vaguely wondered how far down the cart had taken them, realising that for most of the trip they had been going steadily downwards. Griphook found the keyhole on a large black door that Harry hadn't seen until it started to swing open and gold blinded him for a second. So much gold. And silver. And bronze. Harry had no idea what the coins in front of him were, but he didn't need to know in order to realise what a big deal it all was.

Harry looked up to Professor Quirrell who had an amazed look on his face but then saw Harry and his expression swiftly changed back to emotionless.

"Right. You don't know Wizarding currency. The gold ones are known as Galleons, the silver ones are Sickles and the Bronze ones are called Knuts, with a 'k'. 17 Sickles to a Galleon. 29 Knuts to a Sickle. You seem to have quite a bit here. You will have to take a fair amount out but I noticed that you don't have anything to hold that money in. Which is why I have a gift for you," Professor Quirrell said, rummaging around in his robes for something before finally pulling out some kind of bag. "The Gamekeeper at Hogwarts, Rubeus Hagrid, asked me to give this to you. He knew your parents well and gave me a pouch to give to you, on which I have performed an undetectable extension charm and another charm which makes the pouch basically weightless even if it is full. Fill it up if you want. There is no limit to the money you can take from your own vault." Professor Quirrell said this dismissively but Harry wondered whether that was entirely true. Surely they would not allow him to remove as much as he wanted?

Professor Quirrell handed Harry the pouch which looked no bigger than two of Professor Quirrell's fists put together. Harry began to pile large amounts of money into it and it did actually seem to be endless. When they finally left the vault Griphook gave a report on the withdrawal which ended up as 200 Galleons, 400 sickles and 300 knuts. After quick calculation Professor Quirrell told Harry that that would be about £1146 which was far and above anything Harry had ever had before. Harry, once again, felt shocked, but he was also very aware that there would likely be more shocks before the day was finished.

The trip back was worse than the trip to the vault because this time they had to go upwards and that was more frightening to Harry and, evidently, Professor Quirrell who seemed to look even worse than he did when he left the cart earlier. Despite this Harry was the happiest he had ever felt and, as he left Gringotts and looked out once again at the beautiful Diagon Alley, he felt a strange sense of calm wash over him. As if he was where he was meant to be.


	5. Unlikelihood

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER FOUR —

 _Unlikelihood_

Harry felt himself looking all around the place once again, gawping at the amazing sights of Diagon Alley, not believing that the Muggle populous had never spotted the place. _It isn't exactly hard to see_ , Harry thought with an inward chuckle. Harry was extremely eager to start shopping for everything that he needed, and hopefully more than that, but Professor Quirrell stopped him by grabbing hold of his shoulder. Harry flinched and went slightly rigid before looking up at Professor Quirrell's face, which had become an even more atrocious looking green colour than before and had to stop himself from laughing.

"Mr Potter, it is almost lunch-time but I feel that you could go and do one thing before that at the very least. I wouldn't normally do this but that cart ride made me feel rather ill so I am going to go looking for some sort of cure for my nausea. While I am doing this you could probably go and purchase your wand." Harry couldn't help but grin at this. "Ollivander will take care of you."

"That sounds great, Professor," Harry said excitedly to a still ill looking Professor Quirrell. "Thank you." Professor Quirrell looked at Harry seeming slightly sterner.

"Just so you know, I may not be done by the time you are finished so I would advise you to buy yourself some lunch. There are a lot of good stands around and they are easy to spot. Some even have the Muggle foods you would be accustomed to," he told Harry who felt quite happy with that. "Well, I will be off now. _Ollivander's_ is just over there." Professor Quirrell pointed to Harry's left at a shop he had seen and longed to go to since setting foot in Diagon Alley. Professor Quirrell left very quickly in the opposite direction before Harry eagerly made his way to the wand shop.

Harry stopped and looked at the sign over the entrance to the shop before going in. 'Ollivander's: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC'. _382 BC?_ Harry thought. _That's a very long time ago_.

When Harry finally entered the shop which he had been so interested in, he saw a boy around his age standing with an older man. The older man looked almost like Einstein, Harry thought. That was really the only way to describe him. His long, silvery hair was frizzed out everywhere in a manner that closely resembled that of Einstein. He also had long sideburns as well which were as distinctively silver as his hair.

The boy, who was now handing the old man a few galleons, was a different case. He seemed about Harry's age but was slightly taller and more slender, with sleek, platinum-blonde hair and grey eyes. He had a pale complexion and rather sharp, pointed features. After giving the older man the gold wizard's coins, the boy marvelled at the wand in his hand. It looked to be about 10 inches long and was black as the night sky.

When the boy turned around, he jumped slightly as he saw Harry in the doorway, obviously not having heard him enter. However, he soon sneered and moved to exit the wand shop, looking to go straight through Harry. Harry moved out of the way just in time for him to hear the old man, who Harry was now assuming was Ollivander, speak in a low, seemingly amazed voice.

"Harry Potter."

The boy about to leave the shop stopped abruptly and stood fixed to a point about three feet in front of Harry, staring at him in a very strange way. Harry idly wondered why this was. But he had little time to ponder this as Ollivander strode towards him and shook Harry's hand firmly.

"I knew this day would come Mr Potter. It had to." The old man still seemed slightly in shock and the platinum blonde-haired boy still did not move a muscle. Ollivander moved Harry closer to the front counter and went straight to the massive piles of long, thin boxes that Harry had only just that moment noticed. The shop seemed full of those boxes. That and a lot of dust. As Ollivander looked through some boxes, measuring tape appeared out of nowhere and began to measure Harry. It appeared to be unsupported by anything, so Harry assumed that it was powered by magic. It even managed to push Harry's arm up to get a better measurement. As he pulled out a wand from a box, Ollivander spoke again.

"You know, Mr Potter, I remember every single wand I have ever sold. I remember your mother and father receiving their first wands from myself as if it were only yesterday." Harry wondered how Ollivander could remember that many people, let alone wands. He gave Harry the very long wand he was holding but almost instantly snatched it up as if it were made of fire and was going to burn Harry's hand. "No. No, that's no good. I thought that would work. Almost an exact replica of your father's wand. Oh well. Onto your mother's we shall go."

Ollivander looked almost cheerful as he went to work finding the next wand for Harry to try out, although Harry was rather perplexed as to what was actually going on and how Ollivander was judging which wand was good and which weren't. The next wand was definitely smaller than the previous and looked a lot sleeker as well. Ollivander handed it to him, but again Harry had it snatched away within seconds. Harry wondered if the old man was simply toying with him, although he didn't really get that feeling. Harry could tell that Ollivander was enjoying it, though.

"I was hoping that one would work. It would have made things a lot easier for the both of us. The hard way it is I guess, Mr Potter," Ollivander said, sounding even more cheerful than he had before.

As Harry tried another eight wands he kept looking back at the boy who had yet to leave the shop. The boy had managed to find a small, spindly chair to sit on, although Harry couldn't work out why he hadn't left. Ollivander was taking so long with the next wand that Harry was about to go over and talk to the boy and ask him why he was so shocked but just as he started to move, Ollivander let out a loud gasp and muttered one word. "Curious."

After speaking that word, Harry noticed the old man actually calm down somewhat. He slowly made his way to the front desk, and towards Harry, carrying a long box with the lid off handling it as if it were made of delicate porcelain. As he pulled out the wand Harry felt a strange chill go down his spine. It was a dark brown colour and wasn't quite as smooth as some of the others that Harry had tried. It had a nice looking handle on one end of it as well which gave it an almost tree-like quality compared to the others. There was a look of awe on the face of Ollivander as he handed Harry the wand.

Almost the moment he took the wand, the room lit up in a shade of gold and it seemed as if a wind was blowing throughout the wand shop. There was a gasp from the boy behind Harry, and also from Ollivander as well. When things finally settled down it took a minute for Ollivander to calm himself down enough to talk and even when he did he could only mutter the word 'curious' again.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking," Harry piped up in a small voice, not wanting to frighten Ollivander, who looked as though he was about to jump at the slightest word. "What, exactly, is curious?" Ollivander looked at him with the same look of awe as he had on his face before.

"It is curious, Mr Potter, that you seem to be destined for that wand in particular. You see, Mr Potter, the wand chooses the wizard, this is always true and has always been true, but this wand … this wand is not an ordinary wand," Ollivander replied in a voice which sounded no more than a whisper but one which still managed to carry in the small shop. "It is curious that this wand chose you of all people. As I told you, Mr Potter, I remember every wand I have ever sold. Every last one. What you do not know is that each wand has a 'core' that comes from a magical creature that assists it in producing magic to the wand's full extent. There are many cores used around the world, though I only use three, but perhaps one of the rarest is the phoenix feather. Mr Potter, phoenixes do not give their feathers lightly and most only ever give one, if they ever do so. One phoenix, however, gave me the pleasure of two feathers. So I, as you would expect a wandmaker to do, made two wands from it. This one, eleven inches and made of Holly, and another I sold over 50 years ago. It is curious Mr Potter that this wand chose you when its brother…gave you that scar."

In the last few words Ollivander was pointing a long, bony finger at the lightning bolt scar on Harry's forehead. When he finished he heard a gasp from the boy again. _What does he mean?_ Harry wondered. He had always been told that his scar was from the car crash his parents had supposedly been killed in, though now that he thought about it, there was no car accident so how _did_ he get the scar? Now lost for words, Harry reached into his pouch, retrieved seven galleons and paid Ollivander before quickly leaving the shop, and Ollivander, behind, his brain swimming with the new information. He didn't say a word.

He had gotten probably 20 metres from the shop when he heard a voice calling out to him.

"Hey! Potter! Wait!" Harry spun around quickly to see the boy from _Ollivander's_ running towards him. _What does he want?_ Harry thought exasperatedly. As the boy reached Harry he stopped and looked at his forehead in awe. "It's true," he muttered quietly.

"No offence, mate, but I have no idea what is going on here. I only found out I was a wizard a little under two weeks ago and this is my first trip into the wizarding world. I don't know what Ollivander was talking about back there. For all I know, he's mad. And if you don't mind, I'm very hungry and I need to find somewhere to eat," Harry told the boy standing in front of him quickly and with a sense of urgency. He knew it sounded rude, and he didn't really mean it to sound that way, but he was just overwhelmed and wanted to get away.

"But you just said you have never been here before so you wouldn't know where to go would you?" the boy drawled slightly when he spoke and he sounded kind of snobbish. Harry knew the boy was right, but said nothing about it. "How about I take you somewhere that I know is good?"

Harry looked at the other boy for a moment, thinking. On the one hand, he would be perfectly happy to be alone after what he had experienced with Ollivander. On the other hand, it would probably be better for him to have someone experienced show him around. Since Professor Quirrell was gone and Ollivander seemed insane, all Harry had was this random boy who seemed nice enough, if a bit haughty.

"Sure. Why not?" Harry replied slowly, with his head still spinning slightly. He hadn't let go of his newly acquired wand.

"Sounds good. But if I were you I would put the wand away. First of all, you obviously won't be able to use it and secondly you won't need to," Harry stowed the wand in his pouch and looked towards the other young wizard. "My name's Draco Malfoy, by the way."

"Harry," Harry replied, forgetting that Draco already knew his name. "Harry Potter."

Harry set off with Draco and after about 5 minutes they found a nice little shop called _Astonia's_ which sold a lot of food that he didn't recognise. He and Draco sat in a booth and Harry looked at the menu wide-eyed. Draco obviously noticed Harry's confusion, so he took the menu and spoke to the waitress and ordered two of something Harry didn't recognise. The waitress lingered as she stared at Harry's forehead before rushing away, her eyes slightly enlarged and her cheeks tinged with red.

"Don't worry, it's good. I've had it before," Draco said in what seemed to be much less of a drawl but his voice still seemed a little bit cold. "You know, Harry," Draco said looking deep into Harry's emerald eyes with his grey ones, "in _our_ world you are perhaps the most famous person ever to have lived. At least in the last thirty or so years."

Harry gaped at the blonde-haired boy in front of him. Famous? Him? _Well, it would explain why people seem interested in me_ , Harry thought.

"Are you serious?" was all Harry could say and Draco let out a laugh, but soon noticed that Harry was still confused.

"Wow. I guess you really don't know then do you?" Draco asked in a serious sounding voice. Harry looked at the table in front of him.

"No I don't," he said sadly. "All I know is that my parents were murdered. I don't know how or by who. I don't know how that makes me the most famous person in this world either."

"It isn't just that ..." Draco stopped to think. "But I don't think I'm the best person to tell you about this," Draco told Harry still sounding serious. "I just thought you should know because people are going to want to meet you and you may as well be prepared. Now, I remember you telling me that you have only known that this world exists for only a little while?" Draco's voice got happier towards the end and he smiled at Harry.

"That's right. Only about two weeks. I guess you've known your whole life," Harry said a little happier they had gotten away from his apparent fame. "Could you tell me a bit about this world then? I figure I should know a bit before I get to Hogwarts."

Draco then began to tell Harry all about the wizarding world and Harry became more amazed by the minute. When Draco began to tell him about the four houses at Hogwarts, which were called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin, someone approached Harry at the table. The waitress had turned up with their food, which looked to Harry very much like muggle battered fish and chips, but she was not alone. She was accompanied by five other people.

"Dedalus Diggle, Mr Potter. So pleased to meet you," a little man in a purple top hat said excitedly as he shook Harry's hand vigorously.

"I'm Doris Crockford Mr Potter. So glad to see you here. We were all beginning to wonder," a small old lady said with a wide grin. The whole exchange took about five minutes as each person felt the need to shake his hand and thank him more than once. But eventually they all left and Draco laughed.

"See, Harry. I was right wasn't I? Famous." He laughed again before starting up where he left off as Harry ate. "Now where was I? Oh yeah, the Houses. Personally I would die before I go into Hufflepuff. What a joke of a House." Harry felt himself get quite annoyed at that statement. It was a very 'Dudley-like' thing to say. Well, something the 'old' Dudley would say, at least.

"Why is it a joke, Draco?" Harry asked, trying and failing to keep the cold tone out of his voice.

"Father says that it's where all of the weak students get placed," Draco replied, sounding a little shocked at Harry's tone. "They aren't good at magic."

"But didn't you just tell me that Hufflepuff is all about loyalty?" Harry asked slightly angrily.

"Well, that's what books say," Draco replied. "But Father says that he doesn't believe that. He says that he has never found a useful Hufflepuff, and that he never will. He says that the only reason they say that Hufflepuff is based around loyalty is so that they don't feel bad."

"Does your father even give any people from Hufflepuff a chance?" Harry asked.

"No," Draco replied smugly. "He says that they aren't worth his time."

"That's horrible," Harry replied, thinking back to his childhood. "You know, Draco, I've been told that I'm useless my entire life. My family constantly told me that I was good for nothing and that I was a waste of time, money and space. I was told it so much that I actually believed it. I still do, a bit."

"But you're Harry Potter," Draco said, shocked. "You aren't useless. You..." he trailed off.

"And what if I was put into Hufflepuff?" Harry asked. "Would you think I was useless then?"

"Well ... no, I guess not," Draco replied.

"So maybe you shouldn't judge someone based on what House they're in," Harry replied. Draco looked conflicted

"But Father has always said..." Draco struggled with finding what to say next. "Father always believed that."

"Well it sounds to me like your Father was wrong, Draco," Harry said calmly as a horrified look spread on Draco's face. It was obvious he had never heard anyone say that before.

"Father? Wrong? Well... maybe about this. Okay, maybe people who go into Hufflepuff aren't all as bad as father believes. But my father _is_ right about everything else."

"Like what?" Harry asked, partly to see if Draco's father was as bad as he seemed, and partly because he was genuinely curious.

"Like blood purity." Draco sneered as he said this.

"Blood purity? What's that?" Harry was confused at this statement and Draco continued to sneer.

"It's the belief that pure-bloods are a cut above the rest as they have no Muggle taint in their blood," Draco said. "Take my family, for instance. Both sides of my family have not had one Muggle, Squib or even half-blood in the family tree. Only pure-blood witches and wizards for generations. You see, anyone who has even the slightest bit of non-magical blood in them is weaker. Why would we want them?"

"What's a Squib?" Harry asked calmly, though he could feel himself getting annoyed once more.

"A person born to a wizarding family with no magical powers. The opposite of a mud … Muggle-born." Draco had obviously corrected himself at the end there. Harry wondered what he was going to say but let it slide.

"So a person can be born from a Muggle family and still have magic?" Harry asked already knowing the answer based on what he had heard his Aunt Petunia say.

"Yes, sadly," Draco spat. "Worst types."

"But Draco," he said eerily quietly. "Can these people do the same things magically as pure-bloods?"

"According to Father they can't," Draco stated confidently. "He says that their magic is almost non-existent. Just one step above Squibs. I suppose that's some consolation for them, but not much."

"Your father? The same guy who hates Hufflepuffs because they are 'useless'?" Harry asked. "And he also hates Muggle-borns as well? Why does your father hate Muggle-borns?" Draco seemed to be taken aback at the coldness and sheer audacity of Harry's question.

"They didn't earn the magic," Draco said bitterly. "They were born to Muggles, who are lower than us because they don't have magic and don't know about our world."

"And you earned the magic? How? By being born to a wizarding family? So these people are hated because of something they can't help?" Harry said bitterly thinking back to the reasons why he was punished by his aunt and uncle. "Draco, this sounds a lot like the Muggle problem of racism. Do you judge people on the colour of their skin?" Harry had not long before this meeting learnt about racism in school. Draco looked confused.

"No. Of course not," he replied, as if it was a stupid question.

"Well some Muggles do that. And you don't agree with that. So how is that any different to this? Muggle-borns have no say in their who their parents are. Some Muggles believe that a person is less than them if they have differently coloured skin, which is something they cannot control. Why is it fair to hate Muggle-borns, then? Or even just Muggles?" Harry asked, not really feeling angry, but more like he was trying to convince Draco. Draco looked as if he was wrestling with his thoughts. "No one can control their parents. It seems to me that anyone who has magical powers is the same as anyone else with magical powers. Just because their parents aren't magic doesn't mean they are worse than you. Shouldn't you look at what a person's like and not their blood?"

"No. If there is no blood purity how do we distinguish magical talent?" Draco asked sounding less sure of himself.

"Well, we are going to a _school_ right? And the school does test us?" Draco nodded slowly. "Well isn't that the best way to distinguish between people?"

"I ... guess so ..." Draco trailed off again so Harry picked up his argument again.

"So, if a Muggle-born student was better than a pure-blooded student at magic wouldn't that show that Muggle-borns aren't any different to pure-bloods?"

Draco looked shocked, as if the thought had never occurred to him.

"But Father has always said that anyone with any form of Muggle blood in them is weaker than those without and that the wizarding world would be better off if there were only pure-bloods in it." He sounded a lot less sure of himself now.

"And from your own experience, Draco, are people born to Muggle parents any weaker than anyone born to 'pure-blood' parents? Or what about a Muggle? Are they worse people?" Harry asked.

"I … don't think I have ever met anyone less than pure-blooded. And certainly not a Muggle," Draco admitted. "But why would my father lie to me?" Harry sighed.

"Maybe he believes what he tells you," Harry said as Draco continued to look torn. "How can you judge people you have never met, Draco? There could be someone out there in Diagon Alley right now who has come from a Muggle family who is shopping for their stuff for Hogwarts who could turn out to be brilliant. And you aren't even going to give them a chance?"

"But ... but Father said ... he said ..." Draco looked at Harry, wide-eyed and confused. As he trailed off, he looked down at the table, not speaking. Harry watched him, not knowing what to do. When a drop of liquid fell to the table below, Harry suddenly felt utterly wretched. Harry had never made anyone cry before. He felt terrible as he thought back to all the times that he had been made to cry by other people. He just sat there until Draco looked at him. His eyes were now slightly bloodshot. Harry reached over and squeezed his arm which caused alarm to be seen in Draco's face.

"What in Merlin's name are you doing?" Draco asked quickly as he roughly pushed Harry's hand away. _Merlin?_

"I was just trying to apologise. I didn't mean for that to happen, Draco. I've never made anyone cry before. I'm sorry. And don't worry. No one will find out that it happened," Harry smiled at Draco. Draco still looked shocked but allowed a small smile as well.

"Thanks. I ... I know I don't know you well ... but can I tell you something?" Draco asked warily.

"Go right ahead. I'm a great listener. At least I think I am," Harry responded encouragingly. "No one's really told me anything before."

"You won't tell?" Draco asked, his eyes betraying his fear.

"Not unless you tell me it's okay to," Harry replied.

"Thanks. It's just that, all my life, my parents have told me how much better I am than everyone else because of my pure-blood status and how I should hate all Muggles and Muggle-borns. Now I hear Harry Potter, of all people, tell me that what they were saying is wrong. At first I thought you were just stupid, but then I got angry. I was angry because I knew you were right. Everything you've said makes more sense than what they've told me. I just never thought what they told me could be … well ... wrong. My parents ... well they don't really treat me well. At least I don't think they do. I don't have anyone to compare with. At least no-one good. To be honest, today is the first time I have ever talked to anyone my age about … well … anything really. My other friends are all too stupid for my liking and they're all sons of my father's friends. And then you come along and I actually like you and then I said those things ..." He trailed off, looking at the table.

Harry felt a strange sense of déjà vu. It wasn't that long ago he was having a similar conversation with Dudley.

"Draco, don't worry about it. I just think I felt really strongly about that because I think my mum was a Muggle-born. Aunt Petunia told me that her parents were surprised to receive my mum's Hogwarts letter so they must have been Muggles." Draco looked at Harry with a surprised look on his face. Harry laughed before extending his hand. "I don't know what you're thinking right now, and I'm not going to pretend that I do, but I'm sure you have a lot to think about. I hope that when we get to Hogwarts we can be friends. God knows I need one." Draco shook Harry's hand.

"Well I can tell you right now that no matter what, that will happen. You know, today I was sure I would be sorted into Slytherin. Now ... I probably still will be but I really don't want to be. My parents both come from long lines of Slytherins and all the family I have met are the same as my parents. I don't want to end up like them. Right now I don't care where I get sorted out of the other three houses, but I do hope you and I end up in the same house. I could use a friendly face." Draco gave Harry a weak smile.

The rest of their lunch was spent with Draco telling Harry more about the wizarding world, specifically the Ministry of Magic, and in turn Harry told Draco about the Muggle world. Harry couldn't tell which of the two of them was more interested in what the other had to say. Just when they finished eating Harry saw Draco notice a man approach the table.

"Professor Quirrell? How did you find me?" Harry asked, surprised. Professor Quirrell was looking at Harry and then Draco with a look that only betrayed nothing.

"I put a tracking spell on you. Very advanced magic. Not very well known and not really good for long distances. Mainly only Aurors use it. Come on, Mr Potter. We have to go and get the rest of your school supplies," Professor Quirrell said quickly, his eyes scanning Draco.

"Okay Professor," Harry started but had an idea and he turned to Draco. "How much have you got left to get Draco?"

"I've only had time to get my wand," Draco replied with a quizzical look on his face.

Harry turned to Professor Quirrell before speaking. "Professor, this is Draco Malfoy. He'll be starting Hogwarts with me this year. He and I met at _Ollivander's_ and we had lunch together because I didn't know where to go. Can he please join us?" Professor Quirrell looked slightly taken aback. Harry thought he must know Draco's family somehow.

"Yes, I don't see why not. Mr Malfoy is quite welcome to join us if he so wishes," he replied, looking in Draco's direction without changing his expression. Draco looked extremely happy.

"Thanks, Professor!" Draco said grinning.

They left _Astonia's_ and headed for _Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions_. Harry groaned at the thought. He had never been clothes shopping before but, from how Dudley had always acted when he returned from shopping with his mother, it was no fun at all. Draco still looked cheerful as they walked into the robe shop and they saw a squat witch with short white hair standing at a desk. Harry assumed that this was Madam Malkin.

After an initial shock that she would be fitting Harry Potter for his very first robes, Harry was relieved to realise that she was not going to treat him any differently to any of her other customers. She was still very happy to see him and even thanked him for something. Harry had never done anything for her. _Why is she thanking me?_ When this happened Harry looked at Draco who gave him a look and mouthed 'not now' so Harry dropped it but still wondered why he was being treated this way by so many people. The whole time, Professor Quirrell just looked out a window at the street. Harry didn't blame him. It had to be boring for him.

Harry left _Madam Malkin's_ and stuffed two of his newly acquired robes into his pouch and put one on so he would blend easily with the crowd. He also pulled out his wand and put it in an inside pocket of his robes along with his pouch. Harry was beginning to notice just how much room he had in that pouch now, especially since Professor Quirrell had magically put dividers in as well so that he could sort his coins from his school supplies and had another section for the clothes he bought as well. With those three sections he still had another for the larger objects.

After a few visits to some other shops Harry noticed that Draco was having a hard time carrying all of his things.

"Professor Quirrell, is there any place we can buy a pouch like mine for Draco? I think it might just make his life easier," Harry asked, receiving a grateful smile from Draco. Professor Quirrell nodded pointing to a shop Harry had not noticed before.

"You boys stay here and I will go and purchase one for Mr Malfoy." Draco gave Professor Quirrell a few galleons before Professor Quirrell headed for the shop. Harry turned to Draco realising something.

"Draco. You seem to talk a lot about your father but he isn't with you. Where exactly is he? Him being here would have been easier. Could have helped to carry all of your stuff at least," Harry said with a wry smile but Draco looked slightly upset at this.

"You'd think he and mother would come, wouldn't you? But they had other more 'pressing engagements'," Draco said bitterly. "More pressing than witnessing their only son get his first wand. But in all fairness, they've never led me to believe that they would act in any way other than that."

"It sounds to me like they're like the Dursleys are to me." To Draco's puzzled expression he added, "My Muggle relatives I live with. It's strange, the similarities. My aunt and uncle both seem to hate me and don't even really care about what I am doing right now. No. Wait, that's not true. They _hate_ what I am doing right now. I guess a difference is that if you died, your parents would care. If I died my aunt and uncle would probably throw a party." Draco looked utterly disgusted at what Harry had told him but still believed him.

"You're right. I guess that's one thing I have to be happy about," Draco smiled slightly at this. Not much of a smile but it was there. Before the boys could continue, Professor Quirrell came out of the shop carrying a pouch that looked almost identical to the one Harry was given. He handed it to Draco.

"I have performed all of the necessary enchantments on it and one other that I thought of while I was in the shop. Can I have yours for a moment Mr Potter?" He asked. Harry nodded and handed the pouch over.

Harry passed the pouch to Professor Quirrell who pointed his wand at it and muttered, " _Negatur Furtum_ ," before handing the pouch back to Harry.

"Professor, what enchantment was that?" Harry asked trying to see any differences in the pouch.

"I was hoping you would ask. It is not a well known enchantment. I have my theories as to why and I believe it has something to do with the Ministry of Magic," Professor Quirrell replied with a look like he was thinking intently. "What this enchantment does is it prevents the pouch from being stolen. Well, actually, the concept is that if anyone with ill intent towards the pouch, or the pouch's contents, touches the pouch they will instantly assume it is akin to garbage and leave it alone. It is much like a Muggle-repelling charm in that it causes the person to see an object differently to what it is. I know only one other man who knows this particular spell."

"Albus Dumbledore probably," spat Draco which earned him a reproachful look from Professor Quirrell.

"Why the tone, Mr Malfoy?" Professor Quirrell asked with only slight anger in his voice. He managed to keep it under control though.

"Father says that Dumbledore is a Muggle-loving ..." Draco broke off and began to look foolish. Harry grasped his friends shoulder in a friendly way.

"Draco," Harry said quietly. "It's okay. I understand." Draco nodded and Harry smiled. "Don't look embarrassed every time you say something your father told you. You might think he's wrong, but he's still your father." Draco smiled at him but Professor Quirrell stared, obviously wondering what these two young boys meant by this. "It's a long story. Maybe one day we can tell you it. But for now we still need to go to ... _Slug & Jiggers Apothecary_ I think to get potions supplies. And I would really like a pet. Oh, and books." Professor Quirrell nodded and led Harry and a much happier Draco off to the apothecary.

 _Slug & Jiggers Apothecary_ was one place they didn't linger. This was by far the worst shop Harry had set foot in since arriving in Diagon Alley, perhaps even in his entire life. It was not only very creepy with slimy stuff on the floor, jars containing herbs, roots, and brightly-coloured powders along the walls, and bunches of feathers, fangs, and claws hanging from the ceiling but it also smelt absolutely horrible. It was like a combination of a whole lot of rotten food mixed with more rotten food. They got what they needed and got out, not wanting to spend any more time there then was necessary.

The next stop was _Flourish and Blott's_ to pick up the books that were required for their first year classes. When they stepped into the bookshop Harry was amazed. Never had he seen so many books, or such fascinating ones. Harry and Draco asked the young witch at the counter to gather their first year books and went looking for some books that they might like to buy for extra reading. By the end of their browsing session Harry had a number of books. _Quidditch Through the Ages_ by Kennilworthy Whisp, _Hogwarts, A History_ by Garino, _Sites of Historical Sorcery_ by B.J. Taylor and _Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes_ by E. Limus were all among Harry's school textbooks as they left the bookshop. The last book was recommended by Professor Quirrell who told Harry that was where he found the anti-theft enchantment and that some other useful enchantments could be found in there as well. Draco had bought the same books as Harry except that he already had _Quidditch Through the Ages_. Harry used the last compartment of his pouch for the books. It was very funny watching the pouch's opening enlarge to fit the books.

All that was left was to get a pet. Harry had been looking forward to this because Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia couldn't say no to this, as it was on the school list. It would make the both of them very angry indeed. That thought made Harry grin almost evilly as he entered _Eeylops Owl Emporium_. His smile only broadened when he saw what was in this shop.

There were beautiful owls everywhere. There seemed to be hundreds of different colours and even more different types of owls. But it wasn't long before Harry saw the owl he wanted. It was a beautiful snowy white owl and he was amazed at how graceful it looked sitting on a perch in a small cage. A salesman came over and asked him whether he wanted the bird. Harry nodded very quickly and eagerly before the man carried the cage to the front desk where Draco had an Eagle Owl and was rummaging for coins. Harry put a hand on Draco's arm.

"I've got this one Draco," Draco looked shocked. "It's the least I can do. Besides, what are friends for? Consider it a gift."

"Wow. Thanks Harry," Draco said, looking extremely happy. Harry wasn't sure whether that was because of the owl or because Harry had said he was his friend.

Harry paid for the two owls and both boys left, carrying the cages, having stored the owl treats they had purchased in their pouches. Draco named his owl "Aquila" which, he informed Harry, was Latin for Eagle. Apparently Draco had been taught Latin since he was five. Something to do with family tradition. Harry had laughed at that and pointed out that the name sound like 'a killer' and that it fit really well. Both young wizards laughed at that. Harry thought he even saw Professor Quirrell's lips twitch slightly as well.

Harry had decided to name his owl Hedwig. Harry had seen the name in a book he was browsing through at Flourish and Blott's and liked it.

"Well boys," Professor Quirrell began, "it is now 4 o'clock and we are done for the day. Mr Malfoy, you will be taking the Floo home I presume?" Draco nodded at Professor Quirrell with a sad look on his face.

"Don't worry Draco. I'll see you in a month at Hogwarts. If anything happens we'll deal with it at Hogwarts. Besides," Harry said with a smile coming over his face, "you can send me letters by owl. I know I'll send some to you." Professor Quirrell, much to Harry's surprise, interjected at that moment.

"Mr Malfoy, if I may. I don't know, nor will I pretend to know, about your conversation with Mr Potter over lunch but I can gather enough to understand that Mr Potter said something that has caused you to have something of a change of heart regarding certain matters. I know how people like Lucius Malfoy can be regarding these matters. I would advise you not to attempt to anger him. If something is going to happen let it happen at Hogwarts where you can be protected. Professor Dumbledore puts the students' safety above anything else while they are at Hogwarts. The same cannot be said for when they are not there. Lay low and hope that nothing happens before September 1st." Professor Quirrell looked very serious when he said this, even more serious than normal. Draco simply nodded his assent.

"I know. I know. Everything both of you are saying is true. It'll just be hard, that's all. My parents are hard enough to live with at the best of times." There was a strange glint in Draco's grey eyes. "But I have options now. I don't have to follow my parents blindly anymore. Thank you for that Harry." Harry smiled and nodded.

"You're welcome Draco. But you think you have it tough, I have to go and live in a house for a month where magic is despised by the two adults and where I sleep in a cupboard. Luckily my cousin is being nicer to me and will be excited to see everything from today," Harry realised he was now rambling so he stopped. He also noticed the disgusted looks on the faces of Draco and the usually emotionless Professor Quirrell. It was only then that he realised that he had mentioned the cupboard. "Um ... yeah. I ... uh, sleep in a cupboard. I have my whole life. And they have two currently unused rooms in the house. Told ya they didn't like me." Draco stared at Harry wide-eyed while Professor Quirrell actually shook his head, showing the most emotion he had all day. "Draco, I want to thank you. You are the first real friend I've ever had in my life and I will always be grateful for that."

Harry put out his hand and Draco shook it firmly.

"See you, Harry. Thank you, Professor Quirrell." Harry nodded and Professor Quirrell looked on as Draco walked away.

"Professor. Before we go back to Privet Drive I need to ask a question. If I read through my text books and want to try anything, is it alright if I do? With my wand I mean," Harry asked Professor Quirrell in a wistful voice but the Defence teacher shook his head.

"Sorry, Mr Potter but it is against the law for any child under the age of seventeen to practice magic outside of school with only a few exceptions. So you will have to do with learning the theory behind the spells, the incantations and the movements necessary before you can actually do them in the safe environment of Hogwarts." Clearly Professor Quirrell noticed Harry's disappointed look. "Rest assured, you will be well ahead of most of your peers if you do read the textbooks. All students start at the same place practically, but that need not be true for the theory."

"One more thing, Professor. Can you organise a meeting between the Headmaster and myself to discuss exactly why people think I'm someone important? If so, I would really like it if we could organise for Draco to attend, as well as any other friends I may make before then." Harry seriously doubted that he would, but he wanted to keep his options open.

"I can organise the meeting Mr Potter. Professor Dumbledore is a very fair man so I am sure Mr Malfoy and any others attending will be fine," Professor Quirrell replied almost emotionlessly. "I will schedule it for the 2nd of September, if possible, which will be a Monday and therefore a day of classes so the meeting will have to be after your last class." Harry nodded and Professor Quirrell gave Harry a rare smile and held out his arm. Harry smiled back and grasped Professor Quirrell's elbow. He could see Diagon Alley twist and turn away in front of his eyes and the next thing he saw was the Dursleys' front door.

"This is where I leave you Mr Potter. I must get back to the school and report in with Professor Dumbledore. Don't worry about sending an owl to the school. I can inform the Headmaster that you are going to be attending. But there is one last thing," he said reaching into his jacket one last time and pulling out a small, red, rectangular piece of paper. "Your train ticket. I know the number is confusing and I would tell you how to find the platform but I like to have my fun, as surprising as that may seem. Just wait there and I am almost certain someone will help you. If they don't, just send Hedwig and someone will get you." He allowed another smile. "Good luck, Mr Potter. I will see you September 1st."

At that, the first real wizard Harry had ever met vanished with a slight 'pop'. Harry knew what was ahead of him when he entered the door and braced himself. _Only one month_ , he thought to himself. _Only one month. Thirty-one days to go_.


	6. Interlude I

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— INTERLUDE I —

 _Draco Malfoy, Quirinus Quirrell and Albus Dumbledore_

 _ **Draco Malfoy**_

The very moment Draco Malfoy stepped out of the fireplace in his bedroom he looked around the dark, silent room and began to feel slight disgust towards what he saw. There were any number of items that his father had bought for him over the years, many of which were probably illegal dark objects. At least, that is what Draco had guessed in the past. Before, Draco didn't mind the idea of the dark, and possibly illegal, objects as his father had told him that he needed these objects for what he called 'the greater good'.

Draco finally understood what his father actually meant by 'the greater good'. He had once believed that it had meant purifying the magical world, purging Muggle-borns and creating a better life for all those who were worthy to live within it. Now, due in no small part to the one and only Harry Potter, he knew what his father really wanted. He wanted to destroy the lives of all who he deemed worthless and not worthy of living in the magical world. Or more to the point, _his_ magical world. That thought sickened Draco more than anything had before.

Before that day, Draco had only ever heard Harry Potter's name spoken by his father in a contemptuous voice, as if he had hated him for some reason. Draco had always had his own opinions on the boy though. In truth, Harry Potter was something of an idol to him. He would never admit this to his father, but he did think what he had done was pretty amazing. Now he knew more about this boy than he had ever known, more than anyone in the wizarding world had possibly ever known. Harry Potter wasn't a pure-blood. Harry Potter wasn't twenty feet tall, despite what people would want to believe. Harry Potter didn't care about blood. Harry Potter's mother was Muggle-born. Harry Potter was friendly to him.

 _Friendly_ , Draco thought wistfully. _I have never met a person like him before. He treated me like an equal. Like I was a … friend_. All the other children his age that Draco had met all treated him as superior as and far better than them. Sure, it was all good fun to begin with, but Draco had soon realised that it was lonely to be treated that way. The price of power is loneliness, and Draco didn't think that he could handle that. He was sure that he would want to get to know Harry more. However, he still had the problem of his parents.

While his mother, Narcissa, may remain neutral and may even be happy for her son to have an actual friend, she would not defy her husband under any circumstances. Draco's father, Lucius, on the other hand would likely detest his son for his choice in a friend. While Draco hoped that his father might come around eventually, he had a bad feeling that ht was wrong. And even while his father was hating him, his mother would do nothing, as she had long ago learnt what her place was in the family.

Lucius Malfoy was, first and foremost, the sole ruler of the family. Whatever he said went. No exceptions. Narcissa did not want her husband upset, so she always agreed with him. Especially when he went on long rants about Albus Dumbledore, The Dark Lord and his 'Old Buddies'. Draco could tell, however, that his mother did not agree with everything his father had said. But, somehow, Lucius never noticed. Power also seemed to blind people, Draco found.

Draco had always sensed that there was something bad about his father, but assumed that everyone was like that because the only people he had to base his thoughts on were his father's friends. There had always been doubts in his mind, but he never dare let them be anything more than doubts.

Now more than ever, Draco was having these doubts. This time, however, he knew that he had to let them be more than doubts. He had to realise the reality of them because he knew that he would not stop being friends with Harry just because of his father. He used to care what his parents thought. _But now I can see the truth_ , Draco thought. _I no longer care what father has to say. I will have to pretend, at least for a while, but I think I can deceive him well enough to live with it_.

Draco lay on his enormous and extremely soft bed with what seemed like hundreds of thoughts going through his head. In just one day, one person had managed to shatter his illusions about the world. He knew that his life would become very difficult when he went to Hogwarts. Somewhere within himself he knew that he could stand up to his parents and looked forward to the day when he did so. He knew he wouldn't be alone like he had been for eleven years. He had a friend. Harry Potter. And with that thought, he rolled over so that his face was in his pillows and wept.

* * *

 _ **Quirinus Quirrell**_

Quirinus Quirrell had to go through Hogsmeade to get to the castle in order to talk to the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, about his trip to Diagon Alley with the 'Boy Who Lived', Harry Potter. Dumbledore had requested an immediate report on the day and the boy in general, something that did not entirely surprise Quirinus.

Going through the Hogwarts gates and heading to the castle, Quirinus let his mind wander to Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. He wondered exactly what had been the crux of their conversation at lunch. He saw in Malfoy's eyes a look he had not seen in the eyes of a Malfoy before. It seemed to Quirinus that it was a look of hope. Almost like he had woken up after a very long period of darkness and saw light for the first time in a very long time.

 _Something Potter said to him really must have gotten to him_ , Quirinus pondered. Then there was Harry Potter himself. He was not at all what Quirinus had expected. When he arrived at Number 4 Privet Drive he sensed the hostility and hatred in the air and saw it on the faces of Vernon and Petunia Dursley. When he performed slight Legilimency on the two of them, only enough to view emotions, he had to stop very quickly due to the sheer amount of hatred there. Quirinus wondered more than once how Potter had lived in that house for close to ten years.

At least their son was better. Harry, though, was very different in almost every way. He was so small that Quirinus actually wondered if he was, in fact, eleven. Harry also had a strangely haunted look on his face whenever he looked at his aunt and uncle which made Quirinus nervous. But it was when he performed Legilimency, once again only for emotions, on Harry that he saw a very unique mind. A world of emotions were there in that eleven year olds mind. Excitement. Hurt. Anger. Sadness. Happiness. Curiosity. Fear. It seemed like, over the course of the meeting, he somehow experienced each emotion possible. It was disturbing.

Quirinus did not have long to dwell on this as he reached the Gargoyles that guarded the Headmaster's Office. He spoke the password, 'Mars Bar', and the Gargoyles parted and a spiral staircase was revealed leading to Albus Dumbledore's office.

When he reached the top of the stairs and opened the doors he saw the old man looking at him from his desk and motioned for him to sit down and he did so. Dumbledore listened to Quirinus intently, as if every word was precious. And perhaps they were.

* * *

 _ **Albus Dumbledore**_

As the balding, black-haired man entered the office of Albus Dumbledore, Albus wondered what, precisely, the look on the man's face was. It was not very easily interpreted, even less so when you take into account that Quirinus Quirrell rarely showed emotions. Even Albus could not read him very well and he had had years of practise.

Albus waved a hand to a chair in front of his immaculate desk which was surrounded by many artefacts and objects the famous wizard had collected over his many years. The room was large and seemed to have a huge magical presence. It looked as though the portraits of all the former Headmasters were asleep, but Albus knew better.

"So, Quirinus. How did it go?" Albus asked the unreadable man with genuine curiosity. After all, Albus was the one who left Harry to the Dursleys. For better or for worse. Quirinus' face, as always, did not betray anything. "Start from the beginning if you would. I feel as if I should know everything about this young man." Quirinus began by telling him about his meeting with Harry and the Dursleys.

"His aunt and uncle seemed afraid of what I was doing when I demonstrated magic. Actually, terrified might be a better word. The intriguing thing is not them, for I believe you said they would act in that manner, did you not Headmaster?" Albus nodded, with not a hint of a twinkle in his eyes and Quirinus continued. "But there was more. I seemed to be able to actually feel the hatred coming from them. It was rather concerning." Albus shook his head sadly, his fears becoming closer to being confirmed. He motioned for Quirinus to continue.

"It was actually their son, Dudley I believe his name was, that was most intriguing to me. He was genuinely interested. He was even the one to ask me to perform magic. Not Mr Potter, but his cousin whose parents were terrified at the mere sight of me. It was definitely intriguing to say the least."

Albus was taken aback by this, but he did not let it show. He had believed that Petunia's son would turn out like her and afraid of magic. _Perhaps it is him_ , Albus thought. "That _is_ intriguing. Please continue Quirinus. I understand you left for Diagon Alley after that?"

"Yes, Albus, we did. I decided to side-along Apparate him there, as using Arabella's fireplace would be too risky right now. She could be more useful to Mr Potter in the future as a Muggle." Albus nodded and listened intently as Quirinus described Harry's reactions to Diagon Alley and the trip into the Gringotts vault. He was slightly put out that Quirinus left him to get his own wand and went to recover. Dumbledore was relieved when Quirinus informed him of the tracking spell.

"I do not know exactly what went on in _Ollivander's_ but I got the feeling that something big happened when Mr Potter bought his wand because he didn't even tell me about getting it and it seemed to me that he was excited to gain the wand before he left." Albus noticed concern in the Defence Professor's voice but the moment he heard it, it slipped away.

"Ah, Quirinus, he was probably put out by Garrick. He can come on quite strong, as I'm sure you remember," Albus said smiling. Silently he made a mental note to go and talk to the eccentric wand maker.

"But the strangest thing isn't what I don't know about his wand, but rather what I don't know about what happened afterwards. I allowed him to go to lunch by himself and, when I found him, he was talking to someone intriguing, to say the least. Draco Malfoy." Albus merely raised his eyebrows in surprise and leaned back in his chair with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Truly? Well, I suppose stranger things have happened. Though, if he is anything like Lucius then there may be an issue," he replied, genuinely concerned.

"Actually Albus, quite the opposite. When I got to the restaurant they were having lunch at I noticed a sombre look on young Mr Malfoy's face and it seemed as if he had been crying." Albus leaned forward as that had definitely piqued his interest. "As you are aware, I am a Legilimens so I took a quick look into the young boy's mind, just to see if the look was sincere and the amazing thing was, it was completely sincere." Quirinus' voice was the most emotive Albus had ever heard. He was surprised. "He was not being deceptive in any way. Oh and, just so you know I did not look into either boys' memories at all. Just the surface."

Albus was reassured by this information but was reeling from the revelation about Draco Malfoy. _Could it be?_ He was not willing to jump to conclusions. He leaned forward with his elbows resting on his desk.

"Do you have any idea what it was that they discussed?" he asked Quirinus quietly.

"I was not told directly by either of them, but from their conversations later I gathered that they discussed the wizarding world and Mr Malfoy told him about the … for lack of a better word … unpleasantness that his parents believe in. I believe that Mr Potter provided Mr Malfoy with sufficient evidence to show him that his parents' views on the world are warped and wrong," Quirinus told the Headmaster in a neutral voice, all emotion gone once again. Albus was amazed at this information. _Already changing the world_ , he thought chuckling to himself. _And not starting small either_.

"And you have reason to believe that Draco is, indeed, heading away from his parents' beliefs?" Albus asked and the other man nodded.

"Yes. Mr Malfoy's parents were occupied today so Mr Potter asked me if he could join us. I agreed and gained a lot more insight into Lucius' son. He seems genuine, Albus. And it seems that Mr Potter trusts Mr Malfoy quite a bit, as he has asked for a meeting with you the day after they come to the school to discuss, well, Mr Potter and his past. He specifically asked for Mr Malfoy to be allowed to attend. And Mr Potter also mentioned that, should he meet anyone else, he would like it if they be allowed to attend as well," Quirrell said emotionless once again. The twinkle returned to Albus Dumbledore's eyes.

"I shall, of course, allow this. At the end of the opening feast I ask that you inform Harry that he can see me after the first day's classes and that he can have anyone he likes attend." Albus' face lit up as he smiled and it almost seemed like his beard and silver hair twinkled with his eyes. "Unless there is anything else, you may leave."

"Actually, Albus, there is something else." Albus leaned forward slightly. "While at his relative's home, I performed Legilimency on Mr Potter, to view emotions, and over the course of the whole meeting I saw a large variety of different emotions. More than I have ever seen in someone of his age, or any age if I am honest, in such a short period of time. There was a mixture of positive and negative emotions though it was clear that the negative emotions won out, particularly when he focused on his aunt and uncle. I fear something may be terribly wrong." Albus turned slightly white at that last statement.

"Th - thank you Quirinus," Dumbledore stuttered slightly but caught himself. "It was good of you to bring that to my attention. You may leave now."

Quirrell nodded and headed out and down the stairs. When Quirrell left, Albus leaned back in his impressive, ornate chair and frowned. _Did I do wrong by Harry by sending him there?_ Albus silently wondered. _Was I too trusting? I hope what Quirinus observed was not as bad as he made it seem._

After a while Albus moved on to thinking about other things. Perhaps, more important things.

 _I am certain of one. The Boy Who Lived. I have guessed at another. The Possible Second. I now have two more hunches. Draco Malfoy, Albus thought, could he be The Unfortunate Son?_


	7. The Final Days

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER FIVE —

 _The Final Days_

Harry looked at the plain, boring front door of Number 4 Privet Drive and had very mixed feelings. On one hand, there was Dudley who had become something of a friend to Harry and he knew that he could live with Dudley at least. On the other hand, there was Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon who had always treated Harry as nothing more than a slave. They truly believed that he was the scum of the earth and that he was good for nothing at all, though they still made him do everything they could think of. After a few minutes of thinking Harry came to the conclusion that one more month with them was bearable in comparison to his past ten years.

Harry didn't even bother knocking before entering the house. He opened the door and the first thing he saw was Uncle Vernon sitting in his reclining chair watching a news program on television. Harry could see no one else, in that room at least, and the house was surprisingly quiet.

Uncle Vernon spun his head around quickly at the sound of the door opening and quickly spun it back again, but not before Harry noticed a shocked look when he saw the white owl in a cage.

"Oh. It's _you_ ," he said spitefully. "Dudley told me to tell you he is upstairs in his room. Still don't know why he wants to associate with _your type_ ..." Uncle Vernon trailed off mumbling something about 'freaks'. _Maybe it's because he isn't a hateful moron_ , Harry thought knowing better than to say that aloud.

"Thank you, Uncle Vernon," Harry told his Uncle completely unemotionally. Uncle Vernon simply grunted and continued to watch the television as Harry went up the stairs carrying only his magically altered pouch and Hedwig in her cage. _This should be fun_ , he thought with a smirk on his face as a plan formed in his mind.

When Harry reached Dudley's room he politely knocked on the closed door, even though Dudley had told him that he didn't have to. "Come in," Harry heard Dudley say over the loud noise that was most likely emanating from Dudley's television set. When Harry entered the room, he saw Dudley sitting on his bed watching cartoons on his television. Dudley looked up at him. "Harry!"

To Harry's surprise Dudley turned the television off instantly and stood up off the bed. The excited look that was on Dudley's face faded away quickly and Harry had to try very hard to suppress a smile.

"Where's all of the stuff you got?" Dudley asked sounding very disappointed. Harry noticed that Dudley's eyes had locked onto the white owl.

"Oh, it's right here Dudley," Harry replied pointing towards himself. Dudley looked perplexed at this reply.

"Is it all invisible or something?" Dudley asked with a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Well, no," Harry replied with a smile breaking out. "It's just … hidden."

"Hidden?" Dudley asked a little confused, though more intrigued.

"Yeah. In here," Harry said passing Dudley his pouch and Harry watched as Dudley's face still looked perplexed while he tried to weigh the pouch in his hands.

"In…there? How can it all fit in there?" Dudley asked, turning the pouch around in his hands.

"Well, I know you've seen 'Mary Poppins'," Harry started and Dudley nodded wondering what 'Mary Poppins' had to do with anything. Dudley silently passed the pouch back to Harry. "I assume you remember the bag she had that held all of her stuff in it?" A look of sudden realisation crossed Dudley's face and he broke out in a smile.

"You're telling me that the pouch you have in your hand is like the bag Mary Poppins had in that movie?" Harry nodded and Dudley's eyes lit up. "Wow! Cool!" Harry was very pleased with that reaction.

"What do you want to see first?" Harry asked and Dudley immediately started listing things off, making Harry have to slow him down in order to actually show him anything.

After close to three hours of Harry showing Dudley everything he bought they headed down to the dining room for dinner. Dudley told Harry that his parents would probably want to see proof that he actually went to Diagon Alley and Harry would have to prove that he didn't lie to them, despite their hatred of what Uncle Vernon had called 'your lot'. So in preparation for this Harry carried the pouch down with him to dinner. Both he and Dudley wanted to see the looks on their faces when they found out what was inside the magically altered pouch.

When they got down to dinner Harry's food was already on the table and he noticed that he had a lot less than everyone else. This was not unusual. Dudley seemed to notice this as well, so he gave Harry some of his own food when his parents weren't paying attention. The pouch was on the ground at Harry's feet unseen by either Aunt Petunia or Uncle Vernon. It wasn't until Uncle Vernon finished eating that the conversation turned to Harry's day, much to the annoyance of both Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia.

"So … boy. You had a little ... excursion today," Uncle Vernon said not bothering to hide the hatred in his voice. Dudley and Harry exchanged brief smiles.

"Yes I did, Uncle Vernon," Harry replied in a pleasant tone, a smile crossing his lips.

"Don't take that tone with me _boy_!" Vernon said with the hatred even more pronounced and his face beginning to turn the usual purple. "Now, your Aunt Petunia and I are not fully convinced that you did what you said you would today with … that man. So, we require some form of ... proof." Harry smiled and reached down for the pouch, picked it up and put it in front of him on the table.

"Your proof is right there," Harry said happily. Uncle Vernon scowled at him, his face turning a deeper shade of purple as he failed to see what the pouch actually was.

"That _thing_ is proof?" He said raising his voice a lot. "That looks like it could have come from _our_ world. I don't see how that is at all proof! Stop being such a damn fool!"

Harry looked at Dudley who was grinning at him and then looked at Aunt Petunia who only looked perplexed more than anything else. Apparently she had not witnessed such a thing before. Harry turned back to Uncle Vernon, smiled and said, "Oh. So that isn't proof enough? Oh. Okay then," It was very hard for him not to laugh at this. This was the most fun he had ever had at Number 4 Privet Drive. "Well, Uncle Vernon, allow me to give you proof then."

With that he opened the pouch and reached in as far as he could, leaving it looking like he was half in the pouch. The pouch had adjusted itself to fit Harry's upper body as he leant in. Aunt Petunia screamed, Dudley broke out in laughter and Uncle Vernon looked angrier than ever, yet somehow subdued. Harry took a while before he took anything out, partly because he wanted to prolong his aunt and uncle's agony and partly because he didn't know what to take out. In the end, he decided on his wand because it was definite proof that he had been to Diagon Alley.

When he pulled out his eleven inch, Holly and Phoenix feather wand Aunt Petunia gasped and grabbed on to Uncle Vernon's arm. Dudley was still laughing as Harry finally looked at his aunt and uncle.

"Proof enough for you then? Or do you want to see more? I can show you my books, my robes or my cauldron. Oh! I have parts of a frog as well. Or I could go up to Dudley's room and retrieve my owl as more proof if you want," Harry told Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon with a lot of humour in his voice as he knew that Uncle Vernon had already seen Hedwig. He also made sure to wave the wand around a bit as he both looked horrified and frightened. "I hope I don't have to use this thing to prove things to you. Especially since I have no idea what I'm doing."

"FINE!" Uncle Vernon roared, making Harry flinch a little. "That is proof enough now put _that_ away!" Harry felt very satisfied with that reaction. _No need to tell them I can't use it, is there?_ he thought with a smile. Of course, he'd already told Dudley but they both agreed that it would be fun to watch his parents squirm. Harry put his wand away in the pouch and looked up at a very purple Uncle Vernon and a very worried Aunt Petunia. Surprisingly it was Aunt Petunia who talked first, breaking the sudden silence.

"Now that we have got that cleared up," she said with her voice shaking as if she had almost died. "Our Dudders has talked to us today and has said that he is willing to give up his second bedroom so you can have it. We don't like it much but we want to make our Duddikins happy." Uncle Vernon looked, if it was possible, even angrier.

"One _toe_ out of line boy," he began quietly, "and you will be back in that cupboard before you know it. And just so you know," at this he left his chair and got right into Harry's face, so close Harry could feel the disgusting heat of his breath, "you will keep that disgusting bird of yours quiet or we will lock it in its blasted cage. Do you understand me?" Harry nodded happily and looked at Dudley and gave him an appreciative smile.

Sensing the end of the discussion Dudley spoke.

"Come on Harry. We'll get your stuff from the cupboard and move it all to your bedroom." It all only took one trip due to the small amount of things that Harry owned, all of which easily fit into his pouch, and Harry was soon settled in to his new room. The whole time Dudley had a guilty look on his face. Harry didn't say anything about it, however. Nor did Dudley.

He and Dudley sat up until almost midnight in Harry's room reading some of the new books Harry had purchased at Diagon Alley. Harry was reading _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_ and Dudley was reading _A History of Magic_ and every now and then each boy would show the other something in the books they were reading, amazed that all of it was real and true and not some fantasy created my someone. It was all so surreal, and yet strangely comforting.

When they both decided it was time to sleep Harry simply lay on his new bed looking at the roof and thought about everything that had happened that day. He had witnessed magic. It was still so strange to him. Despite everything he had seen and everything he had been told or had read he still felt as though this was all some kind of cruel joke concocted by someone or other and thought that he would wake in the morning and find out he was in his cupboard and that the magical world didn't exist. After thinking about this for what seemed hours, his mind drifted to Draco Malfoy, his new, and, in truth, his first, friend.

Harry wondered about why Draco had the beliefs about 'blood purity' and the Hogwarts Houses. It was obvious that Draco's parents were the ones who taught him all of these things, but Harry couldn't help but wonder why. _Why do they believe it?_ Harry wondered.

Harry had apparently changed Draco's own beliefs, though it seemed to cause Draco a lot of stress. He did appear happier after Harry talked to him, though. Harry was glad he could help Draco and glad he wouldn't be alone when he got to Hogwarts. Harry was also glad that he had made a friend who had grown up in the wizarding world and would be able to educate him a lot quicker. Despite the excitement about the new world that he was now a part of, Harry did wonder how he would learn everything.

When Harry drifted off to sleep he dreamed of the old man, the motorbike, the green flash, the scream and the laughter again and awoke, sweating and with his scar prickling. He groaned as he put his glasses on. The first thing he noticed in the room was that there was light. Sunlight. He looked around and his heart began to pound as he realised it wasn't all a dream. The final test, however, was the pouch.

He reached in and felt around before pulling out his wand out and staring at it for a minute. _It wasn't a dream_ , he thought cheerfully as he dressed and grabbed a nearby piece of paper as he didn't want to use any parchment yet, and wrote a letter to Draco. He wasn't really sure what compelled him to do so as soon as he woke up, but it felt right, so he did it. He made sure that Hedwig would deliver it to him directly and when Draco's parents weren't nearby. Harry didn't know what all owls were like in the magical world, but he did think that Hedwig may have been particularly smart.

The month passed by rather quickly and it was easily the best month of Harry's life. Not that that was really saying much, but Harry genuinely enjoyed himself. He had his own room. Dudley was treating him as a friend. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were scared of him, so he made sure to carry his pouch everywhere he went. It was really the best time Harry had spent at Number 4, Privet Drive.

He and Dudley spent almost all day every day together doing various things. Occasionally, one of Dudley's friends would show up at Number 4 and Dudley would concoct some sort of lie to placate them for a while at least. Because they were all genuinely stupid, it wasn't difficult for Dudley to come up with suitable lies. Harry and Dudley even planned some of them in advance, which was fun for the both of them.

Dudley also went with Harry to a nearby park. He did this mainly to get away from Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. They didn't really do all that much while they were there, but Harry enjoyed himself nonetheless. But the main thing they did over the month was continually look over Harry's wizarding stuff. Mostly the books, which were thick and full of interesting things, so they kept both Harry and Dudley interested.

When it came to August 30th, two days before Harry had to leave for Hogwarts, he figured it would be best to talk to Uncle Vernon about getting to King's Cross Station and to the train that would carry him away to his new life. _That is one conversation that will not go well_ , Harry thought. _At least I have Dudley to back me up_.

Harry, in truth, had not thought of how he would bring the subject up with Uncle Vernon. It was a touchy subject. He was only allowed to talk about anything magic related in a very vague way or Uncle Vernon, or Aunt Petunia for that matter, would blow up at him. If not for Dudley, Harry would have been grounded dozens of times over the last month.

Harry figured the best way to talk to Uncle Vernon would be to not mention magic in any way, shape or form. He also agreed ahead of time not to show Uncle Vernon the ticket at all. If Uncle Vernon saw that his train left from a 'Platform 9 and ¾' he would probably go on a massive rant and Harry would probably not end up going to King's Cross at all.

Unfortunately, the 30th of August was not a good day to be Vernon Dursley. He was exceptionally angry on that day for reasons that Harry gathered were based around his job and something to do with the government. There was no good time to talk to him about King's Cross. So, after dinner he waited until Uncle Vernon sat in his recliner but made sure to talk to him during an advertisement, so as to not anger the large man any further.

"Uh ... Uncle Vernon, I need to talk to you about something," Harry told his Uncle nervously. Uncle Vernon turned his head lightning quickly and Harry could see that his face was already going purple.

"How dare you interrupt me!" Uncle Vernon almost screamed. "I was watching that." He pointed a fat sausage-like finger towards an advertisement about fabric softener.

"I'm sorry Uncle Vernon, but I really need to know if there is any way you could get me to King's Cross station on the 1st. I ... I leave there for school at eleven," Harry was careful not to use the word Hogwarts at any point. Uncle Vernon's face simply got purpler, yet he started to smile.

"You can't get there on your own, huh?" He asked Harry with a sneer. "What makes you think that I would even _consider_ driving you into London?"

"Well, Uncle Vernon, I would think you would because if you didn't I would be stuck here for the rest of the year and a lot of next year as well. I thought the whole point of you telling me about ... my family ... was so that you could get rid of me. And not taking me where I need to go to be able to leave seems like a rather strange way of getting rid of me," Harry replied coolly not missing a beat. He had expected this reaction so he practiced his reply. As he saw Uncle Vernon's face contort with rage he knew it had worked like a charm.

"DON'T GIVE ME CHEEK BOY!" Uncle Vernon roared causing Aunt Petunia to drop something in the kitchen. "Alright! I'll take you to ruddy King's Cross Station, you ungrateful ingrate!" At this, Harry could sense a rant coming so he expressed his thanks quickly and left to Dudley's room where Dudley had been listening intently and was laughing when Harry entered.

"That was brilliant Harry!" Dudley finally said and Harry then broke out in laughter as well.

The following day passed quickly and Harry went to bed on the 31st of August with a million thoughts going through his head. _I'm leaving_ , Harry thought, amazed that it was actually happening. _After ten years, I'm finally leaving this place_ , he thought gleefully. Harry was immensely happy but also immensely nervous as he drifted into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Harry woke and slipped on his glasses. It took him a few minutes but he could feel his heart begin to race as he realised what day it was. September 1st. Harry would have packed had he not been packed for the trip for almost a week. His massive trunk was filled to the brim with clothes and he made sure that all of his other items were safely in his pouch. Harry still marvelled at the pouch. It could fit almost anything. In all of the books he had bought at Diagon Alley, he could not find anything that could do what this pouch did. It could fit a cauldron which was at least double its own size and, even then, there was still a massive amount of room left. When Harry saw the pouch take the cauldron he likened it to the way a snake's jaw works. It simply enlarged its opening and the cauldron fit easily. He tried with his trunk but to no avail. The trunk was simply too large.

He triple-checked everything before taking all of his things downstairs at about seven o'clock, four hours before he had to be on the train. He was extremely excited to say the very least. It took a while after breakfast for Uncle Vernon to get ready to leave with him for King's Cross, and even longer because Dudley insisted that he go with them. Harry was very grateful for his cousin. A car trip with Uncle Vernon was always painful, so he was happy to have someone with him to make it less so. When Harry's trunk was loaded in the boot of Uncle Vernon's new car and Harry had made sure his pouch was with him and had everything in it, Harry and Dudley got in the back seat and Hedwig sat in her cage between them.

Harry had used Hedwig quite a bit over the month prior to talk to Draco. Draco never really gave him too much information about what was going on with his parents but he did tell him some more about the wizarding world. Reading between the lines though, Harry could tell that his friend was as excited as he was to be going to Hogwarts.

Hedwig never ceased to amaze him. She only needed to know who to send the letter to and it got there. She even occasionally brought Harry a few mice she had hunted and nipped at his ears. Harry thought that was because she liked him, though he couldn't really tell. He hoped that was the case otherwise he just had dead mice, and there wasn't much he could do with them.

Silence reigned supreme in the car trip to King's Cross and what was said was between Harry and Dudley who talked about Muggle things because 'magic talk' would annoy Uncle Vernon. When they finally arrived at the train station Harry looked at his train ticket.

"What platform do you need boy?" Uncle Vernon asked gruffly. Harry and Dudley exchanged knowing smiles.

"Platform 10 Uncle Vernon," Harry said only half lying. "When I get there, you can leave. But I will want to talk to Dudley before you do and you may not want to be there when we talk." Uncle Vernon grunted, his face turning a light shade of purple. When they reached Platform 10 Uncle Vernon pushed the trolley to Harry and said simply. "There." Harry was amazed he would even say that. Uncle Vernon turned and walked away towards Platform 7 so Harry turned to talk to Dudley. He was about to say something but Dudley beat him to it.

"Harry, I know we've really only known each other well for a short time but I want you to know that I'll miss you. I want you to promise one thing though," Dudley said quickly, obviously not wanting to prolong the goodbye.

"What's that Dudley?" Harry asked truly wondering.

"I want you to send me letters with Hedwig at least once a week. I'm not boarding at Smeltings so it'll be easy to get on to me and won't be weird for everyone else. And I want them to be as descriptive as possible. Chances are, I'll never experience it all myself so I'll settle for you telling me," Dudley replied with a tinge of sadness to his voice. Longing even. Harry couldn't be sure which it was.

"I will. You can count on it. Might be best if you kept it from your parents though," Harry said with a grin. "Anyway, you need to leave. You know I only have about fifteen minutes to work out this Platform thing," Harry held out his hand.

Dudley, however, ignored the outstretched hand and hugged Harry, much to Harry's shock. It was brief but Harry could never remember being hugged by anyone before then. It was strange but it still left Harry feeling that his cousin was truly that. A cousin. And a friend. Dudley grinned at him before nodding and leaving and Harry turned and stared at the wall that said 'Platform 10' and then looked at the one that said 'Platform 9'. What was he meant to do? _Crazy Professor doesn't give me any clue..._ Harry's angry thoughts trailed off after a while.

He stood looking between the two for at least five minutes before he heard someone, a woman, say, "Packed with Muggles of course," and that was all he needed to hear. They would know how to get to the train. He turned towards where the voice had come from and was surprised to see six people, all red-heads walking at a brisk pace towards Platform 10. They all stopped and Harry was able to see them all. Four of them had trolleys which had large, very old trunks on them. The eldest had curly red hair and wore gold-rimmed glasses. He also had a badge of some kind pinned to his chest. Harry had guessed that the next two he saw were twins because it seemed that he was seeing double, with the exception of their clothes. They, too, had red hair but had a much less serious feel about them compared to the older one.

The fourth was a boy who Harry guessed was close to his own age with, again, red hair and also freckles. He was much taller than Harry but still seemed close to Harrys age. He stayed close by a woman who Harry had guessed was his mother. That woman exuded the feel of what a mother should be. Everything from the look on her face to the way she carried herself screamed that she was a mother. She looked to be in her early forties and was a rather plump woman. There was another person with her who was clinging to her mothers' clothes and looked to have been crying a little bit. She had long red hair and looked younger than Harry, perhaps only a year or two younger.

"Mum," the young girl whined, "why can't I go?"

"Because you are only ten, Ginny, and you have to be eleven to go. Besides, I wouldn't let you until then. You _are_ my last you know," the young girl's mother said quietly but sternly to her daughter.

"But I..." That was all the young red-head called Ginny could say before crying. The eldest boy went to her and gave her a hug. He whispered something in her ear which made the little girl giggle. That was the last of the crying for the moment. But what happened next was the most shocking thing Harry had ever seen in his life.

The eldest boy ran straight at the wall. Harry had to stifle a small scream when he saw the boy go straight through unhurt. He could do nothing except look at the wall in awe.

"Okay Fred, you go next," the mother said to one of the twins. The twins suddenly stepped forward together with broad smiles on their faces. Their mother's face turned very stern. "Fine then, George you go." Both boys stepped forward again, grinning even wider.

"Honestly mother, it has been thirteen years and you _still_ can't remember our names?" One of the twins asked with fake incredulousness.

"It's obvious who we are," the other said.

"Yeah!" the first one said.

"I'm Fred," both boys said in unison smiling very broad smiles. Their mother then whacked both of them over the head with her hand.

"Just get a move on you two," she said coldly, yet fondly. It was not long after that, that the twins disappeared as well. Harry was still gobsmacked at that seemingly impossible feat. He turned to the mother who had yet to see him with his mouth open.

"Okay Ronald, you next. You know what..." the woman trailed off as she looked toward Harry who still wore a look of surprise on his face. "And who might you be, dear?" The woman asked in a very nice, motherly tone, something Harry had never heard from his Aunt Petunia other than towards Dudley.

Without even giving thought to what their reaction would be he replied, "Harry. Harry Potter."

The woman and her son, Ronald, gasped and little Ginny gave a loud squeak and hid behind her mother. _Why would she do that?_ Harry wondered to himself. And then it occurred to him. He was famous in their world.

"Oh ... well ... Hello there, Harry. Uh ... why aren't you on the platform, dear?" The woman asked nervously. Harry was glad that she didn't seem to care much about his supposed fame.

"I don't know how actually. The Professor who gave me my ticket thought it best not to tell me how to get to the platform. Not sure why, though," Harry said trying to sound casual. He walked towards the woman and extended his hand. "You obviously know me but I don't know you though."

She reached out a trembling hand and shook his. When he looked at her, Harry noticed there were unshed tears in her eyes.

"My name is Molly Weasley. This young man here is my son Ron. He will be starting at Hogwarts with you," Mrs Weasley said with a mixture of glee and pride. The young boy nodded and extended his hand which Harry quickly shook.

"Nice to meet you Ron," he said to the young red-head.

"Same t - to you," Ron replied shakily. Harry then turned to the young girl. Harry found he was not much taller than her despite being older.

"I couldn't help but overhear your name, Ginny," he said to the little girl whose cheeks had turned bright red. "When do you start?"

Ginny spoke in little more than a whisper. "Next year," she said simply still clinging to her mother.

"Well I guess I'll see you then," Harry said giving the young girl a smile. Ginny blushed an even deeper red than she had before and clung to her mother even tighter. At that moment, Mrs Weasley got a worried look on her face.

"Only five minutes. Ron, you go through while I explain to Harry," Ron nodded quickly and ran at the wall, disappearing just as the first three had. "You need to run at the wall, which is basically a barrier. Make sure you don't worry too much or you will crash. Take it at a run if you are nervous, dear."

Harry nodded and turned to the barrier. _This has got to be the weirdest idea ever_. Harry didn't give himself much more time to think and ran at the barrier. When he reached the wall, he closed his eyes tightly subconsciously preparing to crash. But the crash never occurred. He opened his eyes to see a bustling train platform and a large scarlet-red train with the words 'Hogwarts Express' on it. Harry felt like he did at Diagon Alley, like he finally found his place in the world. It was a strange but welcome sensation.

It did not take him long to realise that he needed to hurry onto the train and into a compartment. He handed Hedwig to someone who took her to the back with the rest of the owls. He found an empty compartment and packed his trunk above his head, after a lot of trouble, but kept his pouch with him. He looked out the window and saw Mrs Weasley and Ginny hurrying Ron to get on the train. Harry couldn't help but smile at the worried and anxious looks on Mrs Weasley's and Ginny's faces. They found where he was and waved good-bye to him as he waved back. He could see Ginny's face turn a deep red again as the train pulled away.


	8. The Hogwarts Express

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER SIX —

 _The Hogwarts Express_

As he watched the train station slowly move away from him, Harry suddenly realised that he was alone in the compartment. That realisation led to wondering exactly where Draco was. If Harry was being truthful to himself he wanted to see his friend again. _But he probably has to keep up appearances I suppose_ , Harry thought somewhat bitterly. As if on cue the compartment door slid open and Harry looked up to see a blonde-haired, pale looking boy smiling a friendly smile at him.

"Draco! I wasn't really expecting you to come and sit with me," Harry said, failing to keep the surprise out of his voice. Draco looked perplexed.

"Why wouldn't I? I mean it won't help much after tonight if ... no, _when_ I don't get sorted into Slytherin, which I am almost certain I won't now. I may as well enjoy the train ride," Draco said happily but his grey eyes betrayed him. They showed sadness and worry when Harry looked into them.

"Everything'll be fine Draco. Wait and see," Harry told his friend with a smile.

Draco loaded his stuff above his head and Harry noticed that he had his pouch on him as well. The two started talking, mostly about Quidditch, a wizarding sport played on broomsticks that both boys were interested in even though Harry had never really seen it in action. Harry had read _Quidditch Through the Ages_ and understood everything about main aspects the sport and found that he really enjoyed talking about it with Draco. It was about five minutes into the ride when the compartment door slid open again and Harry recognised the red-haired boy instantly.

"Hey Ron," Harry said cheerfully. He then noticed his trunk that he was pulling behind him. "Need a place to sit?" Harry asked with a smile.

"Yeah I do, actually. Everywhere else is either full or wouldn't take me," he replied with a small, shy smile. He packed his trunk above his head and sat next to Harry. It was then that Harry looked to Draco who seemed to be glaring at Ron.

"Oh, yeah. Ron this is Draco Malfoy. Draco this is Ron Weasley," Harry said pleasantly hoping the glares from Draco would subside but he only succeeded in making Ron glare as well.

"I know who he is," both boys growled in unison. Harry looked slightly confused.

"You two know each other? Do you not like each other or something?" The two shook their heads. "Why?" Harry asked exasperatedly. Both Draco and Ron looked at him as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Once again, they spoke in unison.

"He's a Weasley," Draco replied.

"He's a Malfoy," Ron replied.

 _Oh boy_ , Harry thought.

"And?" Harry began and then quickly realised what this was about. "Draco, didn't we talk about stuff like this in Diagon Alley?" Harry asked Draco in a harsh voice, which he felt bad about using.

"No, Harry we didn't. There we talked about Muggles and Muggle-borns. Weasley here is neither," Draco replied angrily. Harry knew the anger was not directed at him but at Ron.

"No, I'm not!" Ron shouted. "I'm a bloody pure-blood!"

"That doesn't matter when your whole family is made up of Muggle-lovers!" Draco replied just as loud, clearly not really thinking.

"Well at least my father isn't evil like yours is, Malfoy," Ron spat back in an angry tone.

"No, but from what Father tells me, your father is..." Draco cut out and looked embarrassed.

"What Malfoy? What is he? Say it! I dare you!" Ron yelled and Draco looked more embarrassed.

"Ron," Harry said quietly but firmly. "I need to talk to Draco for a minute. Do you mind leaving the compartment for a little while? I'll tell you when you can come back in. Leave your stuff."

Ron nodded quickly, and slightly angrily, and stood up. When he left the compartment, he slammed the door shut almost shattering the glass. Harry turned to Draco and started to say something but Draco talked first.

"Harry ... I ..." Draco started before Harry cut in.

"Don't worry. You know what happened just now. Look, I don't think you should expect yourself to change so quickly. I didn't really expect a blow up on the train but it's happened." Draco hung his head a little bit.

"I'll leave if you want me to," he said sadly. Harry looked shocked.

"Why would I want that? I want you here," Draco looked at Harry appreciatively. "But, I also want Ron here as well. His family helped me on to the platform and I like him, okay?" Draco nodded so Harry continued. "What I think you should do is apologise. If there are any problems, I will talk to Ron myself. I also think we should tell him what happened in Diagon Alley so that he feels he can trust you more. Is that alright with you?"

"Fine by me Harry. You know, I really didn't want to leave. Thank you," Draco said, sounding very sincere. Harry got to his feet and pulled the compartment door open and looked at a still angry Ron.

"You can come back in. I've talked to Draco and he has something he wants to say to you," Harry said with a smile on his face. Ron looked taken aback but entered the compartment quickly. Harry sat opposite Draco and next to Ron. "Go on, mate." Draco nodded and looked at Ron.

"I apologise for my outburst a moment ago. I have been ... working on myself since meeting Harry in Diagon Alley and he pointed a few things out to me." As Ron heard Draco tell the rest of story his eyes widened with shock and surprise.

"So, you're telling me," he said sounding very surprised and sceptical, "that you had a talk with Harry Potter, of all people, in Diagon Alley and he changed your mind about things your parents have been telling you your whole life? Bloody hell. I find it hard to believe yet, somehow, it is a crazy enough story to be true." Draco smiled weakly.

"Well it is very much true. So, do you accept my apology?" Draco asked Ron.

"Yeah. I guess so. And by the way, I guess I should apologise too. I was out of line as well. Probably should have known Harry Potter would choose right." At that he laughed, as did Draco, but Harry remained silent wondering why it was funny.

"Well, I have no idea why that is funny but I assume you know my ... story then Ron?" Ron nodded and opened his mouth to talk but Harry put his hand up to stop him. "Please don't. You may know my story but I don't and I would rather hear it from someone who can tell me everything. I have already talked to Draco about this so I would like it if you could keep the story to yourself until after I hear it," Ron looked confused but nodded anyway. "Oh, and Draco, I asked Professor Quirrell whether he could organise a meeting with Professor Dumbledore tomorrow after class for him to tell me my story. I also asked him to get Professor Dumbledore to allow you to come as well. And anyone else," he added looking at Ron with an encouraging smile.

"I would be glad to be there Harry," Draco told his friend.

"I've never met Dumbledore before. You two are lucky. He's supposed to be really cool. Crazy, but cool," Ron said with a mixture of sadness and happiness.

"Ron, you can come too if you like. I don't think I'd mind. Besides, we are in the same year and I have a feeling that my story is not exactly a fun one, so I would rather have as many people with me as I can." Ron beamed at the invitation.

"I'd love to come! Thanks Harry!" Ron was ecstatic. The conversation then moved on to happier topics. Harry couldn't help but notice that, no matter how long they were talking, Draco and Ron still seemed extremely stiff towards each other.

After a while of talking about Quidditch, which Ron was very into they heard a squeaking coming from the hallway and a shout from, what sounded like, an old lady. "Anything from the trolley?"

Harry and Draco exchanged smiles but Ron looked at his shoes, a look which went unnoticed by the other occupants of the compartment. When the trolley reached their compartment, the lady opened the door.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?" Harry and Draco stood up instantly and began digging around in their pouches for money.

"No thanks," Ron said sadly pulling out what looked like a ball of goo. "I've got a sandwich." Harry felt a pang of sadness as he realised that Ron couldn't afford any sweets.

"I'll take some of everything," he said to the little old lady handing her a handful of galleons.

"So will I," Draco said.

Within minutes the seats of the compartment was laden with sweets. Ron looked at them all wistfully and looked completely disappointed. Harry looked at him and smiled, his emerald green eyes sparkling.

"Ron, how about you have some of mine. That sandwich doesn't look very appetizing," Harry said looking at Ron as his face lit up.

"Are you sure? I can't ... exactly ... pay you back for it," Ron said quietly, a blush rising to his cheeks.

"I don't expect you to. Consider it a gift from a friend. I have too much as it is," Harry said with a smile.

"I don't know ..." Ron said indecisively. And to both Harry and Ron's surprise Draco spoke.

"Come on, Weasley, he's offering this to you not because you can't afford it but because you are his friend. If you didn't take it, it would be like a slap to his face," he said much to the shock of both Harry and Ron. Harry looked at Ron and smiled trying to show him that he agreed with Draco.

"Well ..." Ron began with a grin. "Wouldn't want to slap Harry Potter in the face, now would I? Never live it down." This time all three laughed. Ron then picked up a cage from around his feet that Harry hadn't noticed before and opened it and pulled out a rat. "This is Scabbers by the way. He's kinda pathetic but he was really all I could bring. Used to belong to my older brother Percy. He's a prefect for Gryffindor this year."

He held the rat tightly and fed it a bean from a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. Harry looked at the box curiously, wondering what they meant by 'Every Flavour'. Surely they couldn't really mean that. _But then again, there were a lot of things you thought couldn't be done before_ , Harry thought with a smile. Ron noticed that he was holding a box.

"Careful there, Harry. You were brought up by Muggles so I know you don't know what they are. They really are 'Every Flavour' and you have to be careful because there aren't just good flavours," Ron said and Draco nodded his agreement, his face scrunching up slightly.

"Yeah, I don't think I have eaten any since the time I got a blood-flavoured one," Draco shuddered at the memory. "If I wanted to taste blood I'd be a vampire," he said laughing.

Harry felt a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach before he asked the next question. "Vampires aren't _actually_ real, are they?"

Draco shuddered and nodded not saying a word. Neither did Ron. Harry shook his head In amazement. _First dragons, now vampires? What's next? Werewolves?_

Harry, Draco and Ron ate and talked for fifteen minutes about various things to do with both wizarding and Muggle worlds, with Harry providing the stories about the Muggle world. There were still a lot of sweets left when the compartment door flew open to reveal a girl. She had bushy brown hair, her two front teeth were larger than the rest and she was about the same height as Harry. She didn't waste time getting to the point.

"Have any of you seen a toad, by any chance? I have been sitting with a boy, Neville Longbottom, who has lost his and I am currently in the process helping him find it," the girl said rather pompously, which made both Draco and Ron grimace.

"No," growled both Ron and Draco in unison causing the girl to have a slightly shocked on her face. Harry on the other hand was very disappointed with his two friends. Frowning at the two of them he stood up and walked to the door, which wasn't very far.

"Sorry, but we haven't seen a toad anywhere. I can help you look if you'd like. I'm sure with someone else helping it won't take as long," Harry said pleasantly, his eyes sparkling.

"That would be great. Thank you so much. What's your name?" The girl asked with a smile.

"Oh ... uh ... Harry Potter," Harry replied preparing for the worst.

"Well, hello there, Harry. My name is Hermione Granger. Thank you for your help," Hermione said sweetly. Harry was slightly surprised she didn't know who he was. Or perhaps she was just being polite. Either way, Harry was quite pleased.

"Wait outside and I'll just grab one or two things," Harry said as he closed the door and looked to Draco and Ron. "You didn't even give her a chance. I'm gonna try to help. I hope you two can be left alone," Draco and Ron nodded looking at each other still looking slightly annoyed. "Good. Let me just get my pouch. I'll be back in fifteen minutes then we can get changed. Okay? By the way, do you know why she wouldn't know me?"

"Probably Muggle-born," Ron said. Harry noticed Draco sneer and then saw a blush rise into his friend's cheeks. Harry reached over and squeezed Draco's shoulder.

Harry grabbed his small pouch and put the string around his neck and carried it under his arm so he wouldn't have to carry it in his hands. He then left the compartment to search for the toad with the young brown-haired girl he had just met who had no idea who he was. _If I am as famous as Draco tells me I am I had better not get too used to this_ , Harry thought sadly, watching the girl open a compartment door and asking the occupants about Neville Longbottom's toad. After a few compartments, and no luck whatsoever Hermione began to talk to Harry.

"I still absolutely cannot believe that I am a witch. I mean, when the day came for my eleventh birthday and a witch came, Professor Minerva McGonagall her name was, and told me what I was and that I was accepted into a school I had never heard of that teaches magic I was absolutely stunned. My parents were as well. See they are both Muggles." _There it is_ , Harry thought with a smile. Ron was right. Hermione seemed to talk forever, and very quickly as well. During the conversation, she would open compartment doors and ask around for the toad. It wasn't long until the inevitable question, "So, what is your story, Harry Potter?" _I don't even really know_ , Harry wanted to say.

"I was bought up by my aunt and uncle because my parents died when I was one year old. They aren't the nicest people. My relatives that is. Far from it, actually." At that, Harry noticed that both of them had stopped walking and Hermione had a look of pity on her face that Harry didn't really want her to have and didn't want to have to see on her face. "The only real friend I have is Draco Malfoy, the blonde-haired boy you saw in the compartment with me, who I met in Diagon Alley a month ago. And what's more is that I didn't even know the names of my parents until my aunt and uncle decided to tell me that I am a wizard just so they could get me out of their house."

Hermione looked very angry at that point and looked into Harry's emerald green eyes which now held no hint of the sparkle she had seen in his compartment. She then did something Harry wasn't expecting. She threw her arms around him and hugged him.

"Wow. Really makes having dentists for parents look really good, doesn't it?" Hermione asked Harry, giggling a little bit before pulling away. Harry smiled, the slight twinkle reappearing.

"Yes, it does. But I feel really good today. I don't have to go back to them for nine months at least. Nine whole months without them! And I get to spend it learning magic and making friends. To be honest, I feel really lucky today," Harry told Hermione and she smiled. "Come on. We've got a toad to find." Hermione nodded, wiped her eyes and opened the next compartment door.

"Hi there. Have any of you seen a toad? I am helping a boy named Neville Longbottom look for one," Hermione asked the full compartment pleasantly. To their surprise the whole compartment broke out in laughter. Hermione's smile faded into a disapproving frown. "What, might I ask, is so funny about what I just said?" Her arms were now on her hips and this caused more laughter. Even Harry found that sight a little funny but he refrained himself.

After a few seconds one of them stopped laughing and addressed both Harry and Hermione with a smug look on his face. He was taller than Harry, his hair was close-cropped and he had dark skin.

"What's _funny_ is Neville Longbottom. We've heard about him, and from what we've heard he is a clumsy, fat, good-for-nothing who doesn't deserve the name wizard," the boy said fiercely with a sneer on his face and laughed again. His voice was rather deep for an eleven year old.

Next to speak was a fair-haired boy who looked very stringy.

"As for his toad. Yeah, we've seen it haven't we, Blaise?" he asked the dark-skinned boy. "In fact, I believe the toad is currently with Goyle, is it not?" This boy's voice had a tinge of an American accent to it. His comment caused laughter to ring through the compartment again.

"That's right, he does seem to have it, doesn't he?" Blaise spoke up after laughing. "And you can tell –" Blaise suddenly stopped talking as he saw Harry at the door with Hermione. "And who might you be, huh?" The question was directed at Harry.

"Harry Potter. And who are you then?" The occupants of the compartment seemed to gasp at the same time as their eyes seemed to grow large.

"Blaise ... Blaise Zabini," Blaise faltered with his speech after hearing who Harry was. He then pointed to the tall, stringy, fair-haired boy and said, "And this ... this is Theodore Nott."

"Great. Now if you'll give us the toad, we'll be right on our way. Which of you is Goyle?" Harry asked angrily. Hermione was looking at him wondering why the group of people seemed to fear him. Harry was also wondering the same thing and was a little nervous because of it, although he didn't let the nerves stop his anger. Nott spoke up.

"You think it'll be that easy, do you?" he asked Harry still sounding slightly fearful and worried but was more confident than Blaise Zabini had been.

"Yeah, actually I do," Harry said when he turned to Hermione. "You've read a lot of books about the magical world, right?" She nodded so Harry continued. "Then can you tell me whether I can use my wand on this train and not get in trouble?" Hermione allowed herself a small smile.

"You are well within the law to use any type of magic on the Hogwarts Express except, of course, illegal magic," she replied. Harry nodded and reached into his pouch and pulled out his wand with a slightly shaking hand.

"You lot might want to just hand over the toad now, because I haven't done magic before and it could be disastrous if I tried now for the first time, couldn't it?" Harry said coolly as he watched the faces of the six students in the compartment become even more fearful. Harry then spotted the boy with the toad, a large, muscular boy who looked to be at least two or three years older than the rest. The next thing Harry knew, Zabini was standing, wand in hand ready to strike, but Harry was faster.

" _Expelliarmus_!" Harry cried acting on instinct, not even knowing what he was going to do, pointing his wand at Blaise Zabini. He even found that he did a movement with his wand. Harry saw a streak of scarlet red light hit Zabini and the boy's wand flew out of his hand and Harry caught it with strangely quick reflexes he didn't even know he had. When he had the wand in his hand he noticed that Zabini had also fallen to the floor. "Okay then. One down. Only five left. Unless of course you want to just give me the toad," Harry said quietly, eyeing the rest of the compartment. He tried to contain the shaking he began to feel. Nott looked at him with a scowl on his face.

"Fine, Potter," he spat as he grabbed the toad roughly from Goyle's grasp. "Have the toad. But be warned. You have made some enemies here today. It's not good to have us as enemies. Remember that, Potter!" He thrust Neville Longbottom's toad into Harry's hand and Harry dropped Zabini's wand next to where Zabini had been sitting in the compartment.

"If you say so, Nott. Don't really see why I should listen to you, though," Harry said with a grin on his face. "Good day." And with that he slammed the compartment door, let out a sigh and looked at a shaking Hermione.

"That spell ... Harry, it isn't in any of our course books. How did you know it?" Hermione asked nervously.

Harry thought and he realised she was right. He had only seen Professor Quirrell use it and he didn't give it a second thought when he decided to use it. There were other spells he could have used that were in the textbooks but he did that one.

"Well, I saw Professor Quirrell, he was the one who took me to Diagon Alley, use it but I wasn't thinking about that then. It was more like instinct. I'm not even sure why I did it. I was a bit scared though. I meant what I said to them. Never used a wand before," Harry replied slightly shakily and Hermione looked perplexed. They walked for a little while before Hermione gathered the courage to ask him a question that was bothering her since the confrontation in that compartment.

"Harry," she began quietly. "Why did everyone in that compartment seem frightened of you? I mean they seemed genuinely scared."

"To be completely honest, Hermione, I have no idea. You know about as much as I do. I've hopefully got a meeting with the Headmaster tomorrow to find out about my past. Apparently I'm famous in the wizarding world. Draco wouldn't tell me why and I asked Ron, the red-head from my compartment, not to. They'll both be there in the meeting with Dumbledore," Harry told Hermione when something came into his head. "You can come as well if you'd like. It might be nice to have someone there who is in the same boat as I am. Someone who doesn't know about my past, you know?" Hermione thought for a minute and Harry saw a smile come to her face and her eyes light up.

"I would love to join you! It will be great to meet Professor Dumbledore as well. He's supposedly very powerful. You know Harry, you told me earlier that you had no friends before now. Well I had no really close friends before now either. I hope to change that," Hermione told Harry wistfully.

"I'm sure you will. Don't mind Draco and Ron's reactions before. They think differently to me," Harry told her giving her one of his encouraging smiles. As they reached Harry's compartment he said, "Anyway, I believe that you are going to need to be getting this toad to Neville Longbottom, so you best be off. I guess I'll see you back at Hogwarts."

"Thanks again Harry. Let me know the time of the meeting. See you soon, I guess," Hermione said as she left to find where Neville Longbottom apparently was sitting.

Harry entered his compartment to see that neither Draco nor Ron were looking at each other. Harry sighed and sat down next to Ron. "What happened, then?" he asked. Both Ron and Draco looked at him and then glared at each other then looked away. Harry sighed again. "I leave you two alone for, what was it, eleven minutes maybe, and you end up acting like this? Surely one of you can tell me what happened."

Harry looked to Ron first who looked angry and then to Draco who didn't look angry as much as he did slightly annoyed and a little embarrassed. It was Draco who eventually spoke up.

"Sorry Harry but we really did try. It's just that old habits die hard. I have been brought up to hate his family, however wrong that may be, and he was brought up to hate mine, however right that may be. It's just a bit early for you to be expecting me to be fine around him," Draco spoke quietly at first and ended a little bitterly. Despite this, Harry knew that he was right. Harry felt that he really shouldn't have left them alone.

Ron spoke next with a lot more contempt in his voice.

"As much as I hate to say it, _Malfoy's_ right. Our families are enemies and it will take some getting used to. I know you trust him but you can't really expect me to that quickly."

Harry looked at both of his new friends and he realised that there was nothing that could be done at that stage about that. "Okay. I agree with both of you. I will settle for you not fighting all the time. And I will try to make it so you two don't have to spend heaps of time together. Is that good?" Ron and Draco looked at Harry and nodded so Harry continued. "Excellent. Now, why did you act that way towards Hermione?"

"It was the way she acted. It seemed like she was full of herself and like she thought she was better than me," Draco replied coldly. "I just can't stand people who are like that. Probably a bookworm and a know-it-all as well." Ron nodded his agreement but didn't meet Draco's eyes.

"So what if she is?" Harry asked defiantly.

"I've never gotten along with her type before," this time it was Ron replying. Harry thought Ron actually seemed colder towards Hermione than Draco was. "I never have. I don't really like people who are smart like that. My brother Percy, for instance. He may be my brother but I really don't get along with him." This time it was Draco nodding though Harry wondered how much of that Draco actually did agree with.

"Well, just so you know, I liked her. You don't have to but I do," Harry told them. _Can't win them all_ , he thought, _no matter how hard you try_. That was the end of that conversation and the boys soon found themselves getting changed into their robes, ready to leave the train which would arrive in less than ten minutes.

In the last ten minutes of the trip, Harry told Draco and Ron about how he retrieved the toad. Both were amazed at the level of magic he could do saying that normally was a second-year spell. Draco also informed Harry that the people he encountered would most likely all go to Slytherin. He told Harry the names of the others with Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott. They were Gregory Goyle, Vincent Crabbe, Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode, all of whom were Draco's 'friends' before he met Harry. Ron had heard of most of them as well, and not in good ways. Their families at least.

It wasn't long before the train was slowing down and Harry, Draco and Ron all started to become nervous as to what would happen from this point. Ron may have been the least nervous. Draco would have to face his former friends soon, all of whom could easily contact his father and let him know what he was doing and Harry was going to see the place where he would be living for the next nine months.


	9. The Sorting Ceremony

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

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— CHAPTER SEVEN —

 _The Sorting Ceremony_

Though it was surely not long at all, Harry felt that the wait for the train to come to a halt was far too long. But when it did finally stop moving forward, he found that he was more nervous than he had ever been in his life. Even though he had read _Hogwarts, A History_ , and had thoroughly enjoyed every page of it, he still had to wonder exactly what the castle was going to be like, and even what the Sorting Ceremony was actually going to be. Somehow, _Hogwarts, A History_ had skipped that part, claiming that it was tradition for no-one to know how the Sorting occurs until they attend school at the age of eleven.

Nervousness, and even fear, swam around in his stomach fighting to be released in some way, though Harry could find no way to do so and ended up stewing on them. These feelings were not at all foreign to Harry as he felt them on an almost day-to-day basis when Dudley and his gang were around, but this was different. Normally Harry associated that feeling with something negative but, for the first time in his life, he was feeling it because of something positive.

They were told by a man wandering the train to leave their trunks and pets on the train. They would all be brought up to the castle and into their dorm rooms when necessary. Harry made sure he had his pouch in one of the pockets of his robes and his wand in another. He had decided that he should keep both nearby at all times, especially after his run-in with Zabini and Nott's group. When they left the train, they heard a loud, booming voice coming from somewhere within the deep fog that was surrounding the station.

"Firs' years! This way! Come with me! Firs' years!" Harry looked to both Draco and Ron. They both seemed to know who this person was. Ron seemed quite happy to hear the voice, but Draco looked annoyed. Harry wondered whether this was another of the blood-related problems Draco had.

They could only follow the voice, as the fog was thick and combined with the steam from the train it was difficult to see very far into the distance. When they finally got to the source of the voice, Harry gasped. He was looking at a black bearded, giant of a man. His face seemed to be obscured by a long, shaggy mane of hair and a tangled black beard. He looked to be almost twice the size of a normal man and wore a huge, heavy looking coat. Harry instantly recognised him as the man in his dreams that rode the motorcycle away from him. The motorcycle that flew. Harry stared at the giant of a man in wonder. Ron, meanwhile, ran up to the giant and the man smiled at him.

"Hey, Hagrid. I know all about you. You were friends with my brother Charlie," Ron said excitedly as it seemed that the giant beamed through his beard.

"Tha' I was. I guess tha' makes you a Weasley then don' i'?" Ron nodded. "You must be Ron. I hope you take more after Bill and Charlie then you do Fred and George. They give me lots of grief them two. Las' year alone I wen' lookin' for 'em in the forest nine times. Nine!" A blush crept into Ron's cheeks.

"Uh ... yeah. I heard about that. I don't think I will be too much trouble," Ron replied. Something in his voice made him sound frightened.

"That's good," Hagrid said chuckling slightly. He then looked at Draco and Harry. He smiled at Harry but when he saw Draco he seemed to snarl. "And who are your friends then, Ron?" Harry replied for Ron.

"I'm Harry Potter. Pleased to meet you Hagrid," Harry held out a hand and looked at Hagrid's face and saw a single massive tear fall along the side. Hagrid grabbed Harry's hand and Harry found that the large man's hand completely enveloped his own and more than a little of his forearm. Draco was next to speak, still looking slightly angry.

"Draco Malfoy," he said as he held out a hand for Hagrid to shake, which the giant did, albeit reluctantly.

"Nice ter meet yeh, Malfoy," Hagrid said before addressing the whole group of First Years. "Everyone here then? Good. Let's get going to the boats then. Got a bi' of a trip to go before the feast."

Hagrid lead the First Years down a path that lead to a massive lake where there were boats moored, apparently ready for the First Years. Harry beamed as he saw this, as did Ron. Draco seemed unimpressed at first but he slowly became more excited. The boats looked small and could hardly be seen through the fog. They had tall lamps on them which helped the students could see a bit easier.

"Alrigh' then. Everyone in a boat. No more'n four ter a boat. Come on now!" Hagrid bellowed above the chatter coming from the other First Years. Harry, Draco and Ron all found a boat, Harry and Draco sat together in the front and Ron sat in the back with another boy who quickly introduced himself as Justin Finch-Fletchley. Once again, Harry's introduction had no effect. Harry was quite pleased with that because it meant that nothing would rock the boat. They all soon realised that they didn't need to row the boats. The boats moved across the water by themselves.

It wasn't long before they could see Hogwarts and Harry was completely astounded. In the distance, Harry saw the most majestic castle. It was massive and looked extremely formidable. He could see a lot of towers and spires towering over everything else. He also noticed a lot of trees on the outskirts and he even thought he saw one particular tree move. Harry vaguely wondered how he would ever get around the castle. It seemed rather huge. _Hogwarts, A History_ didn't do it justice at all.

All around him, Harry could hear gasps and exclamations at the sight of Hogwarts. Harry looked across at Draco who seemed to be in just as much awe as Harry was. They grinned at each other and Harry thought to himself that it was a good thing Draco was excited as he was to be at Hogwarts. He then looked back at Ron and Justin Finch-Fletchley who were both gaping and staring at the massive castle, though Justin seemed the more awestruck of the two.

Next thing he knew, he heard Hagrid yell, "Make sure yeh duck now!" as they approached an entrance to a cave that looked to go right under a portion of the castle. Everyone followed Hagrid's order. Harry had to wonder if there was ever anyone who didn't duck. Everyone in the boats soon realised that they were not headed into just any old cave. It was an extremely well hidden entrance to the castle. When all of the students had safely exited the boats, they noticed a long flight of stairs that led upwards to a large opening.

"Come on now, up the stairs," Hagrid said and all of the First Years did as he said. Hagrid had a rather commanding presence. After a long walk up a lot of stairs the First Years noticed another person waiting for them. Harry was walking next to Draco and didn't even notice Hermione next to him until she spoke. Harry was too occupied with the woman standing waiting for them with an amazingly stern look on her face. Harry felt like he had met this woman before but he didn't really know why.

"That's Professor McGonagall," Hermione whispered to Harry. Harry jumped slightly but recovered quickly. "She's the one who came and told me I am a witch. Looks very stern, doesn't she?"

Harry swallowed, wondering exactly what this woman would be like. As they got closer Harry was able to make out that Professor McGonagall was wearing dark green robes and a witch's hat of the same colour. Harry couldn't see the woman's hair as it was in a bun under the hat. Her lips seemed to be pursed and she eyed them with what looked like idle curiosity. When all of the students reached where she was standing there was a hushed silence until Professor McGonagall spoke.

"Thank you, Hagrid. You may leave for the feast. I can take them from here," her voice had a pronounced Scottish accent and it came out in a very authoritative tone. It was obvious that this woman demanded respect, and would very easily get it.

Hagrid nodded and left through some very large doors, though no one could get a good look through due to Hagrid's enormous body. Professor McGonagall then looked towards the young students and eyed them all, judging them from afar. Her eyes became a little wider when she saw Harry and became even more so when she saw him standing next to Draco Malfoy.

"Let me be the first to welcome all of you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." There was not a word spoken by the students while Professor McGonagall spoke. Some were silent out of respect, some out of awe and some likely even out of fear. Harry was one of those in awe of what he was witnessing. "Now, tonight, before the feast begins you will be sorted into Houses. These Houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. While you are here at Hogwarts, your house will be like your family. There is also an inter-house competition we run every year at Hogwarts. You will gain points for your achievements and if you break rules you will lose points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points wins the House Cup. When you enter the Great Hall in a moment, you will not join your fellow schoolmates. You will walk down the middle and stop at the head of the tables where you will await your Sorting. Once the Sorting is complete, we will then begin the feast. If you will follow me now please and we can start the Sorting."

Professor McGonagall turned around and pushed open the giant doors that led to the Great Hall with surprising ease. The noise died down as the First Years entered the Hall. Harry looked around the Great Hall and saw four long tables at which hundreds of students sat. Every single person in the Hall was watching the new batch of students quietly. Harry then looked up at the table at the opposite end of the Hall at which the teachers sat. Instantly Harry looked for Professor Quirrell and saw him watching the First Years silently, seeming not to really be paying them too much attention. Harry scanned the table quickly and soon spotted the man who he believed was the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, seated at the very middle of the table.

Albus Dumbledore looked to be a very old man, especially so due to his very long silvery-grey beard and hair. His nose was also crooked, like it had been broken one too many times. On his nose sat golden, half-moon glasses. Harry gasped as he realised that he had seen the man before. Not in real life but in his dreams! How could he possibly dream about someone he had never met in his life? _Another thing I can ask him about_ , Harry thought hoping more than ever that his request for a meeting was accepted. While Harry was watching the Headmaster, he saw him smile and wink at him, his blue eyes sparkling. This made Harry feel a lot less nervous.

When they reached the end of the tables there was silence as Professor McGonagall sat a wooden stool on a small stage directly in front of Professor Dumbledore and placed a hat on it. This hat looked as if it needed replacing. It was frayed and patched and looked like it hadn't been cleaned in a few years. If Aunt Petunia saw it she would probably have a fit. Harry was wondering exactly what the hat was there for but before he could give it too much thought it did something very strange. It started to sing.

 _Exactly a year ago now,_

 _Was last I was seen._

 _I have utilized my time,_

 _Contemplating what could have been._

 _I think of students of this school,_

 _Past, present and in the future,_

 _Upon whose heads I have sat,_

 _And their minds I can picture._

 _Where they were placed._

 _What they have done._

 _I wonder about my decisions,_

 _Was I wrong about anyone?_

 _Never have I placed someone,_

 _Where they did not excel._

 _To you, dear First Years,_

 _I shall be right. I can always tell._

 _You might be placed in Gryffindor,_

 _Those of you brave enough._

 _Known for their daring and chivalry_

 _Gryffindors are known as tough;_

 _The second choice of Hufflepuff,_

 _You must be fair and faithful._

 _The loyal Hufflepuffs are true,_

 _And never at all deceitful;_

 _Or even in shrewd, logical Ravenclaw,_

 _If you've an open mind._

 _They love their books and classes,_

 _Everyone will find;_

 _Or possibly cunning Slytherin_

 _Those with dreams of power._

 _Doing what is necessary,_

 _And will never waste an hour._

 _Know I make no mistakes,_

 _And step up. Don't be afraid!_

 _Your mind tells me all,_

 _And that is the greatest aid!_

At the end of the song the Great Hall burst out in cheers and applause, which made Harry jump slightly but he then recovered and smiled, cheering and applauding along with everyone else. It took a short while for everything to die down. When it did, Professor McGonagall took her place next to the Hat with a scroll in her hand.

"When I call your name, will you please come up, sit on the stool and place the Sorting Hat on your head. You will then be sorted into your houses," Professor McGonagall actually smiled, only slightly but Harry caught it. "Abbot, Hannah."

A little girl with blonde pigtails walked nervously towards the wooden stool. She picked up the Sorting Hat and placed it on her head, a worried look plastered on her face. Before long, the Sorting Hat made its decision. "HUFFLEPUFF!" The Hufflepuff table cheered loudly and there was also a lot of polite applause from the other tables, with the exception of Slytherin.

"Brown, Lavender." A small and very nervous girl with light-brown hair approached the Sorting Hat. Like Hannah before her, Lavender seemed frightened, though it was less pronounced. It was not too long before the Hat chose where she would go. "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted. When Harry looked at the table he instantly noticed some of the red-headed children sitting there and couldn't help but smile.

"Bones, Susan," was next to be sorted. It seemed to take the hat a little longer to sort her than it did Hannah Abbott or Lavender Brown. But it eventually yelled, "HUFFLEPUFF!" Much to the delight of the red-head and the Hufflepuff table.

"Boot, Terrence," was soon followed by, "RAVENCLAW!" and the Ravenclaw table erupted and was greeted with some polite applause, some even from Slytherin.

"Brocklehurst, Mandy," slowly approached the Sorting Hat and sat on the stool for the longest time yet, almost two minutes, before it made its decision and sent her to, "RAVENCLAW!" which garnered more applause from the whole hall, minus about three quarters of the Slytherins.

"Bulstrode, Millicent." A rather large girl with a thick, pronounced jaw, who Harry recognised from the compartment Zabini and Nott were in, went up to the stool and confidently placed it on her head. It was barely on her head for five seconds before it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" The Slytherin table erupted in applause and cheers at their first new student. The other tables quietly applauded but not very loudly, Harry noticed.

Next was, "Crabbe, Vincent," for whom the Hat screamed "SLYTHERIN!". Slytherin cheered loudly once again, with less applause than before from the other tables.

"Corner, Michael," and "Cornfoot, Stephen" were Sorted quickly, with the Sorting Hat pronouncing "RAVENCLAW!" for them both.

"Davis, Tracey," a quiet, scared looking brunette girl, was quickly Sorted when the Hat screamed, "SLYTHERIN!" Through the applause she was receiving, the girl looked bewildered. Harry wondered whether she was expecting that particular outcome. He made a mental note that she had not been among the group on the train.

Next was a young, black-haired boy, "Entwhistle, Kevin," who was not long under the Hat when it bellowed, "RAVENCLAW!"

"Finch-Fletchley, Justin." This was the boy who shared the boat with Harry, Draco and Ron. He was black-haired but had a pompous look on his face. As he sat with the Sorting Hat on his head it became clear this would be a long one. Nearly four minutes in, the Sorting Hat came to a decision. "HUFFLEPUFF!" This got a lot of cheers, none of which came from the Slytherin table.

"Finnigan, Seamus," made his way nervously to the stool. The first thing that Harry noticed about the boy was that he was shorter than Harry. Before placing the Hat on his head, the boy ran his hands through his short sandy-blonde hair. It didn't take long for the Hat to make its choice. "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted at their first new male student. The other tables, except Slytherin, made sure to clap as well.

Following him was "Goldstein, Anthony," a blonde-haired lanky kid who the Hat put in "RAVENCLAW!" The boy looked relieved at that choice and surprised at the applause.

"Goyle, Gregory," was next and the Hat within half a minute cried "SLYTHERIN!" Harry groaned. _Three out of six all in Slytherin_ , he thought, I'm really noticing a trend here.

Harry could feel his heart beat faster in nervousness as he heard Professor McGonagall call the next name. "Granger, Hermione." The bushy haired girl made her way slowly to the stool and looked at the Sorting Hat for a second before swallowing and sitting on the stool, placing the Hat on her head. For the whole four minutes that she was seated, Harry wondered where she would go and whether she would be in his own house. Before Harry could wonder any more the Hat screamed, "GRYFFINDOR!" and Harry applauded and cheered along with everyone else for the first time. As she was walking to the Gryffindor table, Hermione looked over and blushed at the sight of Harry applauding.

Next called was, "Greengrass, Daphne," a girl with long black hair and shockingly blue eyes walked up to the Sorting Hat and placed it on. After about a minute and a half of deliberation the Hat made its decision. "SLYTHERIN!"

"Hopkins, Wayne," and then "Jones, Megan," were declared "HUFFLEPUFF!" and "Li, Su" sat for a minute until the Sorting Hat cried "RAVENCLAW!"

The next name Harry knew so he took more notice as Professor McGonagall called, "Longbottom, Neville," Harry knew this boy to be the one whose toad he had saved. Neville made his way extremely nervous and visibly shaking. The boy was slightly overweight and about the same height as Harry. He also had short black hair. There was laughter close to Harry and he turned swiftly to see it was Nott and Zabini. Harry glared at them but looked forward just in time to see Neville place the sorting Hat on his head. Neville sat there with a frightened look on his face for about two and a half minutes before the Hat finally screamed, "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted once again and Neville looked immensely shocked.

"MacDougal, Morag" was then followed by "RAVENCLAW!" and "Macmillan, Ernie," by "HUFFLEPUFF!"

Harry saw a look of dread on Draco's face when he realised he would be close. Harry looked at his friend, smiled encouragingly and grasped Draco's shoulder, though he was beginning to think about what would happen if he and Draco were sent to different houses. He was surprised to find he was a lot more nervous than he was a few seconds beforehand. Just as Harry let go, Professor McGonagall called, "Malfoy, Draco." Harry noticed that the Great Hall was silent as the silver-blonde haired boy made his way to the Sorting Hat. When he turned around, Harry saw that he had definitely regained his composure as Draco seemed to look unconcerned. As Draco put the Sorting Hat on Harry felt his pulse quicken. As the Hat touched Draco's head something happened.

"SLYTH..." The hat stopped and the Great Hall gasped. Harry noticed a panicked look on Draco's face when the Sorting Hat started to say Slytherin.

There were now whispers and murmurs as to what had occurred. So much so that no one seemed to notice that Draco sat there for a few more minutes. When the Sorting Hat made its decision, there was once again silence as the Hat yelled, "GRYFFINDOR!"

You could have heard a pin drop in the Great Hall at that moment. Harry was beaming and he noticed that Draco was as well as he made his way to the Gryffindor table. Harry looked up at the teachers' table and caught the eyes of a few of the teachers. He noticed that Professor Dumbledore had a calm smile on his face as his blue eyes had a twinkle in them. Harry could have sworn that Professor Dumbledore winked at him but he thought it might have been the light. Harry then looked at Professor Quirrell who showed no emotion whatsoever.

The man to Professor Quirrell's right, however, looked livid. Harry could see the anger in the man's grey eyes and thought he looked very formidable with his long, greasy black hair and snarl. Harry even felt slightly frightened. Harry decided to look at the Gryffindor table and was shocked that Draco was not welcomed by anyone except for Hermione. He could feel himself getting angry at that but it soon parted as people started murmuring.

Professor McGonagall had to clear her throat to get silence before continuing. Harry found it difficult to concentrate as "Moon, Leanne," sat with the Sorting Hat upon her head, which soon cried "HUFFLEPUFF!". He soon had a reason to pay attention again.

"Nott, Theodore." The Hall went silent again as the tall, stringy boy made his way arrogantly towards the Sorting Hat. The Hat had barely touched the boys head, probably for no more than four seconds, before announcing, "SLYTHERIN!" This was not a shock to anyone, especially not Harry. _And that's four out of six_.

"Olerio, Tricia," and "Parkinson, Pansy," both had the Sorting Hat shouting "SLYTHERIN!". Harry recognised Pansy Parkinson as another in the compartment with Nott and Zabini and sighed. _There's number five. Only one to go_.

Next were two twins who, much to the shock of everyone in the Great Hall, except for Professor Dumbledore of course, were split up. For "Patil, Padma," the hat cried, "RAVENCLAW!" whereas her sister, "Patil, Parvati," had the Sorting Hat declaring, "GRYFFINDOR!".

Harry realised now that he was going to be up very soon. There was still one girl to go before him, however. "Perks, Sally-Anne," was called up next. Sally-Anne was probably the shortest First Year student and had long blonde hair and brown eyes. She was very nervous putting on the Sorting Hat but seemed very relieved when she heard it yell, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry's heart was now racing again as he was certain he would be next. He felt like he would be sick. He watched Professor McGonagall intently as she called his name, "Potter, Harry." If it was possible to have less noise than silence, it would have been so for about five seconds after that announcement. After the five seconds, Harry could hear a lot of the whispers around the Great Hall and found it difficult to ignore them.

" _The_ Harry Potter?" was perhaps the most heard exclamation as Harry made his way up to the Hat. Harry didn't wait to put the Hat on, nor did he want to. He now knew he wanted to be in Gryffindor because Draco and Hermione were there but he knew that the Hat would probably make the final decision so he attempted to calm himself as he placed the Sorting Hat firmly on his head, the brim covering his emerald green eyes. After only a second the Hat spoke to him in his head so nobody else would hear.

"Ah. The famous Harry Potter. I would say it is a pleasure to meet you but let's face it Harry, I'm a hat. I have no need to know what goes on in the world around me for my job is only once a year. In fact, the only reason I know of you is simply because of the people's heads I have sat on in the last 10 years. They all know you, but you, evidently, have absolutely no idea why," The Hat said in varying tones.

 _How do you know that?_ Harry asked the Sorting Hat, merely by thinking it.

"Ah, Mr Potter. I know everything about you as I sit on your head. I can tell you things you have probably long forgotten simply because, as I sit here, I can see into the deep recesses your mind," the Sorting Hat patiently explained. "I also know what you did for young Mr Malfoy. When I almost placed him in Slytherin he screamed so loud in his brain I thought I was going to go deaf." Harry was sure he heard a chuckle.

 _So ... he changed your mind?_ Harry asked, extremely interested.

"Well, Harry, I cannot really tell you the details. Perhaps if you ask him, he will tell you. I will tell you, however, that my decision changed for a lot of reasons. I also noticed that Miss Granger is a friend of yours. Be nice to her, Harry, is all I will say," The Hat said in an almost caring, parental-like tone. "Enough about everyone else now. I need to sort you."

 _Go right ahead, Mr Hat. Or do you prefer Sorting?_ Harry asked sarcastically and was absolutely sure he heard a chuckle inside his head.

"You know, in my almost thousand years, Harry, no one has made that joke. Not even your father." Harry's heart jumped at the mention of his father. "But I digress. As I sit on your head I am in somewhat of a dilemma. You see, normally when people get sorted they have traits of maybe one or two of the Houses. You, however, seem to possess traits from all four. You are kind and friendly which could put you in Hufflepuff. You are quite smart and witty, which is perfect for Ravenclaw. You are brave and chivalrous, being exactly what Gryffindor stands for. You are also trying for power within your own head and you have a lot of ambition, which is perfectly Slytherin. In truth, I have no idea where to put you," The Hat admitted almost sounding sad, as if he had never had this problem before or if he had, it had caused him to make a bad choice.

 _Well, if you had one second to make a decision which would you pick?_ Harry asked the Hat.

"I would lean towards either Gryffindor or Slytherin," The Hat told Harry.

 _Well let me make this easy for you then Sorting_ , Harry thought with a grin. _I don't want anything to do with Slytherin after what happened on the Hogwarts Express._

"I can understand that, Harry. I have seen the encounter you refer to and I do think you are correct in not wanting to go there, if only for your own safety. But are you entirely sure? Slytherin could definitely help you achieve everything you have ever wanted in your life. Before I make my decision, I need to know you are certain on Gryffindor," the Hat told Harry sounding genuine.

 _I am absolutely certain, Sorting. I want to be with my friends. And that is in Gryffindor. You should know that Draco was my first ever friend, and I have no plans on leaving him alone in Gryffindor house. Especially not after the lack of reception they gave him._

"If that is your final decision Harry, then so be it. I do believe that it is the right choice, so I will do it. Thank you, Harry. Few are so courteous to me. It is a nice change of pace," the Sorting Hat said, sounding excited and happy.

It was then Harry noticed that the entire Great Hall was watching intently, and silently. _You are very much welcome, Sorting. I think you should announce it now. Who knows what will happen if they have to wait any longer?_

"Very well Harry Potter. It was extremely nice talking to you. GRYFFINDOR!" The last word came out of the Sorting Hat's mouth and Harry lifted the Hat off his head beaming and carefully placed the Hat on the stool. He could have sworn the Hat was smiling.

As Harry made his way to the Gryffindor table the entire Great Hall exploded in cheers and applause. All Harry could do was smile the largest smile he had ever had on his face. He had never felt happier in his entire life. As he reached the table he noticed the Weasley twins dancing and singing, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" Harry couldn't help but laugh at this. Soon he was caught in a flurry of handshakes and congratulations by the people closest to him. Percy Weasley, in particular, was very vigorous in his welcoming. Harry found a spot to sit down in between Draco and Sally-Anne Perks and also sat opposite Hermione and Neville. Draco and Hermione couldn't wipe the smiles off their faces. He looked at Draco and smiled.

"Well, Draco, we got what we wanted. We're in the same House," Harry said happily. "You happy with Gryffindor?"

"Are you kidding Harry?" Draco asked quickly, "I wanted to be here."

Harry was confused at that but didn't press it further as he heard the next name called. "Rafe, Alexandria," went up to the stool. She was about the same height as Harry and had black waist-length hair. Harry had a strange feeling that he had met her before. Her face seemed familiar. Harry shook it off and watched as the Hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" Harry watched the young girl almost bound over to the table. She was congratulated by Percy Weasley and a few others before Harry stood up and extended his hand. She looked in his eyes and shook his hand. It seemed strange to Harry that she didn't once look at his scar. _Perhaps she's a Muggle-born_ , Harry pondered.

"Looks like we will be seeing a lot of each other. How about formal introductions? I'm Harry Potter," Harry said happily, not being able to sound any other way at this point.

"Nice to meet you Harry. I'm Alexandria Rafe," the girl replied quietly. After this Draco and Hermione introduced themselves before Professor McGonagall continued down the list.

"Riander, Nikolas" was followed by "SLYTHERIN!". "Smith, Zacharias", "Thomas, Dean" and "Verity, Helen" were all followed quickly by "HUFFLEPUFF!" while "Turpin, Lisa" sat with the Sorting Hat on her head for nearly three minutes before it shouted "RAVENCLAW!"

There were only two boys left to be sorted. Ron and Blaise. Harry knew, due to 'W' being before 'Z' in the alphabet, that Ron would be next. Strangely enough Harry was not nearly as worried when Professor McGonagall announced, "Weasley, Ronald," and watched Ron nervously approach the Sorting Hat. Harry watched on for less than a minute, closer to thirty seconds really. The Sorting Hat then cried, "GRYFFINDOR!" And then there was applause and shouting from the Weasley twins nearby. Because of them, the applause lasted almost as long as the applause for Harry did. When Ron made his way to the table Harry made sure to give him a pat on the back and Draco even managed a handshake before Ron sat next to Hermione and opposite Draco.

Harry, Hermione and Draco all snarled when McGonagall announced the last first year to be sorted. "Zabini, Blaise." Zabini seemed to strut up to the Hat. Draco and Harry both knew where he was going and Hermione obviously had her suspicions based on the other five people from the compartment. Before the Hat could even come close to covering Zabini's head it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"


	10. Interlude II

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— INTERLUDE II —

 _Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy and Ron Weasley_

 _ **Hermione Granger**_

Hermione watched as the large boy walked up to the stool and the Sorting Hat. She may not have known about the magical world for very long but she knew good from bad and that boy was bad to the core. This was the boy who had held Neville's toad and kept it from them. Though Hermione did not want to think this way, she also thought that it didn't help that he was rather ugly.

When Hermione had opened the compartment door on the Hogwarts Express and saw the three boys sitting around, looking at her, she instinctively tried to gather exactly what they were like. The red-headed boy, Ron his name was, was fairly simple. He obviously did not know how to conceal feelings. Even so, she didn't think he was anything bad. At least she hoped not.

Harry was different. She had never met someone as strangely nice as Harry. While she tried to help find poor Neville's toad and looked around the compartments not one person had offered their help except Harry. All of them were either too busy, too good to look for a First Year's toad or simply just didn't want to help. But not Harry. The first thing he did was offer his help, and, for that, Hermione was grateful. Despite his obviously good nature, Hermione noticed that there was a sort of torment in Harry which would not be apparent to any but those looking specifically. It was in his eyes.

When Harry had told her about his family, she knew that she didn't imagine that tormented look. In fact, she made a fool out of herself and even hugged him. She tried to make a joke, and it seemed to work. Harry didn't look completely repulsed by her overly friendly act. She just couldn't help it, knowing what he had gone through. And yet he wanted to help her. She graciously accepted his help for reasons that were not exactly unselfish. If she was being truthful she really felt connected to Harry, like he was already something of a close friend. She secretly hoped he would be her friend. She needed one desperately.

Hermione's view of Harry was only strengthened by the way he acted towards the cabin full of nasty people. When he stood up for not only himself but her and Neville, who he did not even know, she felt the urge to cry. No one had ever been that nice to her before. It was clear that what he did was incredibly brave, and yet Hermione could see that he was nervous almost the whole time. That didn't stop him though, and he stood his ground.

After he had disarmed that Blaise Zabini boy with his wand somehow, Hermione noticed that his hands were shaking. But when he got the toad back from them he seemed calm again. When he turned around Hermione looked deep into his eyes. She had never seen eyes that shade of green before, and the way that they sparkled made her feel a sense of calm that she had never felt before. Like someone was watching over her. Like someone was her friend. Harry Potter was so nice to her and she would never forget it.

And then there was the third boy in the compartment, Draco was his name, Harry had told her. Hermione wondered whether that was a normal name in the magical world or whether it was as strange there as it would be in the Muggle world. The first time she saw him react to her, it was pure anger and it had taken her aback. When Harry exited the compartment, she saw into it again and saw that Draco looked guilty. She wondered if it was because Harry spoke to him about his reaction, or if it was something else. Something deeper. Something inside her wanted nothing more than to help him, but she knew it wasn't her place.

When the large boy was sorted into Slytherin she knew her time would be close. Hermione had studied about Hogwarts and knew all about the Houses. Part of her knew she was destined for Ravenclaw but another part desperately wanted to be put into Gryffindor. Her thoughts were interrupted by the first witch she had ever met calling her name.

As she walked to the stool she could feel her stomach churning and her heart begin to race. She was hardly ever put on the spot like this outside of the classroom. So many irrational thoughts ran through her head about what could happen and she simply shut them out and thought about where she wanted to go. Gryffindor. Harry had been brave on the Hogwarts Express, and she wanted to be like that.

When she reached the stool, she looked at the patched and frayed Hat and swallowed before placing it on her head and sitting on the stool. She was a little surprised when she heard a voice in her mind.

"Well, well then. A Muggle-born witch," said the Hat in Hermione's mind so clearly that he could have been talking right in her ears.

 _Yes sir_ , Hermione thought hoping the Hat could hear her. _I was informed I was a witch not long ago_.

"Ah, yes I can see it here as clear as day. Very interesting, Hermione. Were you so sceptical even after a demonstration that you had to ask the dear Deputy Headmistress to do some magic outside where she could be free of strings?" The Hat asked with a hint of sarcasm and laughter in its thoughts.

Hermione blushed before gathering her composure again. _I felt it necessary, sir. I was not really willing to believe at the time_.

"Understandable. Few Muggle-born students are at first. Your friend Harry Potter's mother was very much like you in that respect. If I remember correctly, she asked Professor McGonagall to do the very same thing. When the dear Professor turned herself into a cat, I believe Lily's reaction was much akin to yours. Shock and awe," the Hat said, clearly reminiscing about old days.

Hermione was very taken aback. Should the Hat be mentioning such things to others? Was she not the only one like that? But the most important question of all she asked the Hat aloud in her mind. _You think Harry is my friend?_ she asked the Hat in an almost wistful tone.

"I do think so, Hermione. Although, I could be wrong in that respect. I am never wrong when placing people in Houses, however, and I do believe we have chatted enough. Now the problem I face with you Hermione is that you display every quality necessary to be a Ravenclaw but I can see in your mind that you very desperately want to be Sorted into Gryffindor. May I ask why that is?"

 _Of course, sir, but I did believe you could see everything in my head_ , Hermione thought pointedly. _But I will tell you. It would not have mattered to me if I had been sorted into Ravenclaw this morning but since meeting Harry and seeing what he did to those nasty people and how he had such immense courage I knew he would be sorted into Gryffindor House. And to be perfectly honest with you, as I can't really be anything but, I want to be in the same house as Harry because I want friends. I am sure you can see what my childhood was like. Lonely. Desperately wanting friends but never getting any. Please, sir. Let me have the chance_. Hermione could have sworn she heard a sniff in her mind as if the Hat was on the verge of crying.

"You are correct. I did know the answer but I wanted to hear you say it yourself for, shall we say, clarification. Thank you, Hermione for a most interesting discussion, of which I have very few," the Hat said before speaking aloud.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

* * *

 _ **Draco Malfoy**_

Draco couldn't help but think about what the Sorting was to him. He would be defined at the moment the old battered hat placed him into a House. He was so very confused and conflicted. If he were Sorted into Slytherin, would Harry not like him anymore? Would he lose his one true friend in the whole world? Draco definitely did not want that.

But on the other hand, if he were sorted into Gryffindor, like he now wanted to be, what would happen with his father? Despite what he believed about his father and about what Harry had told him, he still loved him and craved his approval. He knew, in his mind, that it would be better for him to be Sorted into Gryffindor. Even if his father disinherited him he would at least have his friend.

He didn't like to think about what would have happened to him if he had strayed down the path which his father seemed to be leading him down. He knew it was the wrong path. He knew he hated his father, perhaps even before he met Harry, but there was a part of him that still wanted to be his son. On the whole train ride, there were a lot of times where he thought like his father had taught him to and he almost always felt bad afterwards because he had it in his mind that if he did things like that, that Harry would become disgusted and not want anything to do with him in the future. But each time Harry had either smiled, squeezed his shoulder or even both. And when Harry did that Draco felt a little more of the hole he had found out had existed close up a little.

It would take time to fully change, Harry had told him. And Draco definitely did want to change. But was he prepared to risk his own family in order to change for the better?

Draco had no more brooding time as Professor McGonagall called his name and the Great Hall fell silent. Draco wished that hadn't happened. It only served to make him nervous as he approached the Hat.

He picked up the ragged old Sorting Hat, sat down on the stool and placed it on his head. Before Draco could think the Hat started to scream. "SLYTH..."

Draco began to scream in protest within his mind before he realised the Hat had not finished the word. The Hat made a sound as if his ears were ringing before talking again.

"Ah ... Draco. I must say you have a complex mind for an eleven-year-old," the Hat remarked.

Draco calmed himself down before thinking, _Uh ... sure. If you say so_. He didn't sound confident.

"I do say so Draco. I can see the war raging inside your mind right now and I can tell you that there is no right choice in this case. Although I believe the Muggles have a saying. 'You can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends.' I believe this quote sums up what you are thinking Draco. You see, I know everything that has happened to you. Everything that your father has done to you, and everything that Harry has done for you. I cannot tell you which path to choose but I will say this, if your memories, and those of Miss Granger's, are any indication I do believe you have chosen your friend wisely and I think that you, in particular, could do well around a friend like him.

"This of course leads me to the Sorting. You see, Draco, this is very difficult in your case because I generally put people where they belong. But you are a different case. I see that the Sorting will indeed be a turning point, at least in your own mind. You believe that if you go to Slytherin you will lose your only friend and if you go to Gryffindor you will lose your family. It is a very tough decision which is why I am leaving the choice to you. But I would like you to remember how violently you protested when you thought I was going to place you in Slytherin."

Draco blushed slightly and then realised something. _You were testing me, weren't you? You knew that one way or the other my choice would be made when you started to Sort me into Slytherin. If I protested that would mean I need to go to Gryffindor. If I let you go, that would mean I needed Slytherin. You are a sly old Hat, aren't you?_ Draco grinned. _Hard to believe you were made by Godric Gryffindor. Please, put me into Gryffindor. It's where I belong_.

"I knew you would choose Gryffindor, Draco. And yes, it was a rather cunning plan if I do say so myself. Probably another few centuries before I try another one such as that." Draco could have sworn he heard a chuckle. "Very well. GRYFFINDOR!"

* * *

 _ **Ron Weasley**_

Ron was having the best day of his young life. Not only was he finally at Hogwarts but he had also met the famous Harry Potter. The Boy-Who-Lived. The vanquisher of evil. Not only that, Harry Potter was in his year. And not only that but Harry Potter seemed like he was going to be his best friend. And not only THAT but Harry Potter was Sorted into Gryffindor, the house in which he hoped to be Sorted into. If there was any doubt before about where Ron wanted to be sorted there was none then.

The only downside was that Draco Malfoy was sorted into Gryffindor as well. Ron didn't really know why he disliked Malfoy. _I mean, Harry likes him, right?_ Ron thought, waiting to be sorted. _Surely that means he can't be all bad_. But Ron still couldn't think about him without feeling angry. He knew all about Malfoy's parents and what they were like and he could only assume that their son would be just as bad as them, or perhaps worse.

He really wanted to trust Harry and believe that Malfoy had changed but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He told himself that he would use a school owl to send his parents a letter as soon as possible to ask them what to do. But for the time being he would proceed with caution.

When the stern looking witch called his name to the front of the Great Hall, Ron made his way to the front, feeling the nerves creep up to the surface. When he finally placed the Hat on his head he was surprised to hear its voice in his head.

"Oh, sweet Merlin!" the voice exclaimed. "Another one! You know, Mr Weasley, I am really getting tired of red hair. How many are left?"

Ron almost answered but was cut off.

"No, no, don't tell me. You know, your twin brothers really toyed with me when they were up here. And your pompous older brother all but begged me to put him in Gryffindor. The other two were fine though. No worries, as long as there aren't many more of you left. You know where you want to be and it matches where you should be, so we have no problem. GRYFFINDOR!"


	11. Defence Against the Dark Arts

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER EIGHT —

 _Defence Against the Dark Arts_

The Hall gasped, except Slytherin who applauded rather loudly and surprisingly raucously. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables were completely silent as Blaise strutted to the very loud Slytherin table. Harry caught Draco's eye and he could see something akin to fear there. He saw the same look on Ron's face as well. Hermione's didn't show any fear, just confusion.

"Uh ... Draco," Harry whispered to his stunned friend who looked over to him. "What just happened?"

Draco looked like he had seen a ghost and stared at Harry for a few seconds before swallowing and answering Harry's question in no more than a whisper.

"It is said that the last time that someone was Sorted almost before it began, and it has only ever happened to people going to Slytherin, was a man who was very powerful for many years not long ago. He was considered by many as pure evil, though not my parents, or Zabini's for that matter. Very, very few people know of his true name but Father said that he often boasted about the fact that this very thing happened to him." Draco stopped and Harry looked at Ron who mutely nodded, the fear in his eyes evident. "People dare not speak his name, even though he died years ago. If people do use his name they use 'The Dark Lord', 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named' or 'You-Know-Who'.

"What just happened with Blaise's Sorting has only occurred a handful of times since Hogwarts was founded. Like I said, it has only ever happened with Slytherin students and every person it has happened to has gone on to be the greatest Dark Wizard of his generation," Draco finished in a near whisper. After a few seconds, Harry's mind ticked over and he realised what Draco was implying.

"So that means ... Zabini is going to be ..." Harry stammered but couldn't finish the sentence. Draco and Ron both nodded at the same time. Hermione, who had been listening to the conversation gave out a little squeak. Harry looked at her but didn't even have it in him to give her an encouraging smile. Luckily the awkward silence didn't last long as the Headmaster stood to talk.

"Well wasn't that very interesting? I believe that, for the first time in many years, we have an equal number of students in each House. I think that the Sorting Hat is to be applauded for that feat," Dumbledore said with a smile and a glint in his eye. This garnered some very scattered applause, but not very much, so Dumbledore continued. "I know all of you are hungry but I do have a few start of term notices. First of all, our Caretaker, Mr Filch, has asked me to remind all of you that the banned items list is growing ever longer, with five new additions this year alone! If anyone wishes to view this list, feel free to see Mr Filch's office. Secondly, everyone is to be reminded that the Forbidden Forest, is just that, forbidden. First years should take particular note of this but there are some in the older years," Dumbledore's eyes darted to the Weasley twins and sparkled with what Harry thought was amusement, "who would do well to remember this as well. Anyone who ventures into the forest without prior permission will be dealt with quickly and severely. Lastly, I must inform all of you that, this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out-of-bounds in very much the same way as the Forbidden Forest is, but for different reasons. You will find out those reasons soon enough. Also, I should announce that we have a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher this year, former Muggle Studies teacher, Professor Quirinus Quirrell."

The Hall filled with scattered applause before Dumbledore continued, "Filling the post of Muggle Studies is Professor Charity Burbage who is starting her first year as a Professor at Hogwarts," More applause followed this announcement. "Also, if anyone wishes to try out for their House Quidditch team there will be notices in your common rooms. Now that we have this over and done with. Let's eat!"

To Harry's astonishment the feast appeared on the table right in front of him. Harry gaped at the food for a few seconds and then looked up at Hermione who also appeared to be quite stunned. Draco and Ron looked unfazed so Harry assumed it was something that happened a lot in the wizarding world. Something Harry would have to become accustomed to. Harry was soon filling his plate and engaging in conversation with the first years around him.

As Harry was sitting beside a young witch by the name of Sally-Anne Perks, he attempted to talk to her a bit after talking to Draco, Ron and Hermione. Harry found her to be very quiet but he took a liking to her. Too many people he knew were loud and outspoken so she was a very refreshing change of pace. She also didn't seem too awestruck by Harry and didn't even start to bring up what he was famous for. He was very glad she didn't.

Not long after his conversation with Sally-Anne, Harry noticed Professor Quirrell making his way to the Gryffindor table, much to the surprise of most people around who apparently seemed to notice amidst the feast.

"Hello Professor Quirrell. Good to see you made it back to Hogwarts in one piece," Harry greeted Quirrell politely.

"Yes. Quite. I am here to inform you, Mr Potter, that I have spoken to the Headmaster and he has allowed your request for a meeting. He told me to inform you that he will meet you after you finish your last class for the day. He will escort you, and whoever is going to the meeting with you, to his office where he will discuss what you would like him to discuss I imagine," Quirrell told Harry quickly and to the point. "And Mr Potter, it may interest you to know that your first class tomorrow will be double Defence Against the Dark Arts. I will see you then." And with that Quirrell turned and walked briskly back to the Teacher's Table at the front of the Great Hall.

While he watched Quirrell leave Harry caught the eye of the Headmaster. Harry noticed the twinkle in the Headmaster's eye and the smile on his face. _He could be as excited as I am about this_ , Harry thought. He then turned to look at his friends.

"You still keen to come to that meeting tomorrow?" He received three nods so he continued. "We'll be picked up by Professor Dumbledore after the last class tomorrow and taken to his office. Also, Professor Quirrell just told me that our first class is double Defence Against the Dark Arts, and it's first thing tomorrow."

Hermione looked ecstatic, Ron looked excited but Draco looked almost annoyed. Harry assumed that it was another prejudice issue. He turned to talk quietly with his friend. "Something wrong with Defence Against the Dark Arts, Draco?" Harry asked trying to sound neutral.

"Not exactly. I understand the necessity of the class, at least I do now," Draco replied smiling at Harry. "But I know that we don't get taught anything of real interest until, at the earliest, third year. I've read the textbook for this year and I can't really see it helping us. I would much prefer a class where we learn how to defend ourselves and not just learn the theory of it and a few spells that really can't harm anyone."

Upon learning this Harry beamed at his friend. Harry could see no hint of prejudice in what he said, or even how he said it.

"What are you smiling at, Harry?" Draco asked sounding annoyed.

"Oh, nothing," Harry lied wanting Draco to work out what had just happened by himself. "Besides, at least Defence is better than History of Magic, if Ron's brothers are to be believed."

From there the conversation picked up. The highlight of the feast was the entrance of the ghosts. Harry was amazed that ghosts actually existed. When the first-years met Nearly-Headless Nick, Draco made the mistake of asking him how he could be "nearly-headless" and Nick showed him much to the disgust of everyone watching. Throughout the rest of the feast Harry got to know the rest of the Gryffindor first years. Seamus Finnigan came from a mixed family. His mum was a witch while his dad was a Muggle. He apparently grew up somewhere in Ireland.

Neville Longbottom grew up with his Grandmother and told everyone how shocked his family were to receive a Hogwarts letter, despite both his parents being magical.

Alexandria Rafe didn't really say much about her family except that they were both pure-bloods but abandoned her to an orphanage as a child. She reassured everyone that she was not a pure-blood supremacist.

Parvati Patil's parents were apparently taught at a magical school in India but moved to Britain before she, and her twin sister Padma, were born. In India, Parvati said, there was not much stock put in blood in relation to magic and her father was Muggle-born and her mother was half-blood. The idea that blood didn't matter in India was something of interest to Draco who spent a while questioning Parvati, making her look uncomfortable.

Lavender Brown was perhaps the most vocal of everyone there. This was a girl who absolutely loved to talk. She talked of her parents, among what seemed to be hundreds of other topics including her friends back home, her pets back home and even her home in general. Harry had to interrupt just to let Sally-Anne talk to the rest of them. Everyone gave him grateful looks for that.

Harry was happy to note that everyone there accepted Draco into Gryffindor without any reluctance but there was reluctance to trust him. Harry and Draco both knew it would happen. Dumbledore soon got up to talk one last time before dismissing them for the night.

"I hope you are as happy as I am with this feast. Quite amazing. Now, before we go I believe we have to sing the school song," Harry groaned. He was not known for his singing voice at all. Dumbledore waved his wand in front of him and words appeared in blue in the air. "Now everyone, choose your favourite tune and sing along. Off we go!"

With that the Great Hall erupted in a mess of tunes and words.

 _Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,_

 _Teach us something please,_

 _Whether we be old and bald_

 _Or young with scabby knees,_

 _Our heads could do with filling_

 _With some interesting stuff,_

 _For now they're bare and full of air,_

 _Dead flies and bits of fluff,_

 _So teach us things worth knowing,_

 _Bring back what we've forgot,_

 _Just do your best, we'll do the rest,_

 _And learn until our brains all rot._

Everyone in the Great Hall finished at different times but it was the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan who finished last, opting for the Funeral March as their tune. Dumbledore smiled as he conducted their last few lines. When he finished, he let out an audible laugh along with about half of the Great Hall.

"Everyone, off to bed now. Classes start tomorrow and sleep will do you all good. First Years, follow the prefects please. Go on, off with you!" Dumbledore said gleefully. There was a lot of noise in the Hall as everyone got up at once. Harry and the rest of the first years all found Percy and a girl prefect who they did not know and made their way to their dormitories.

Harry was amazed as he looked around Hogwarts. There were portraits everywhere that moved and even occasionally spoke. Harry noticed some of the stairs moving as well, but none of them moved while they were on them. Everyone around Harry was also very excited and awestruck. After a little while Percy stood still and told them to be quiet. There was a faint banging noise coming from somewhere.

"Just as I thought. PEEVES!" Percy yelled, his face reddening. "Show yourself, Peeves!"

Somewhere above them Harry could hear something like a raspberry being blown and soon after he saw something appear overhead. It wasn't quite a ghost but it wasn't exactly human either. He heard Draco mutter something about a 'poltergeist' so he assumed that meant Peeves.

"Ooh! Ickle firsties! How fun!" Peeves shouted delightedly as he started dropping what seemed like water bombs all around them. Neville was the only one to get hit directly by one and he looked embarrassed.

"PEEVES! Do you want me to get the Bloody Baron?" Percy said, almost shrilly. Peeves let out another raspberry and dropped one more water bomb directly on Draco's head. Harry had to stifle a laugh. "Come on now, let's keep moving. Not far now," Percy told them.

Draco was still muttering under his breath as they reached a painting of a rather large woman who seemed to be standing in a field under an archway. "Password?"

"Caput Draconis," Percy replied casually. The portrait swung open revealing a large room. The room was painted red and contained a lot of chairs and tables along with couches and recliners and a roaring fire. There were a few people sitting around but not many. Harry instantly felt at home. When he looked at Draco he could tell he felt the same way. When Percy informed them where the dorms were everyone quickly made their way to the rooms and saw that everything was there waiting for them.

There were five beds in the boys' dorm arranged in a circle around what seemed to be some sort of a circular fireplace. Harry noticed that his bed was between Draco's and Ron's, with Draco's on Harry's right and Ron's on the left. Neville was also next to Ron and Seamus Finnegan was next to Neville and Draco.

Harry soon decided to test his bed and found it to be the most comfortable bed he had ever experienced. He wondered if it had something to do with magic. He put his wand and pouch on the table beside his bed and laid back. He soon noticed all the other boys do the same. They all talked a bit that night, except for Draco, Harry noticed, before they finally all drifted off. Harry's last thought before going to sleep that night was that he finally felt at home.

Harry was awoken the next morning by the same dream that had plagued him for much of his life. Except there was a difference this time. It was a lot clearer. For the first time, he saw Dumbledore in his dream. He also saw Hagrid and Professor McGonagall as well. The last part of his dream had also become clearer and he almost saw another face before the green light overwhelmed him and he heard the high pitched, cruel laugh.

When Harry did finally wake up he noticed two figures above him. When he put his glasses on he noticed the figures were Draco and Ron. He also noticed that he was very sweaty and he was breathing very quickly. His scar was hurting worse than before as well. It took a few seconds for Harry to register the shocked and worried looks on his friends' faces. Ron spoke first.

"Harry, mate, you okay?" Harry didn't know how to react so he simply nodded slowly, "We tried to wake you. But we couldn't." Draco cut in.

"Yeah, and it seemed like you were burning up. You were also tossing and turning so much it's a wonder you didn't fall out of your bed. You wouldn't stop. Are you sure you're okay?" Draco sounded very worried and had a look on his face to match. Harry smiled weakly at both of his friends and absently rubbed his scar.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Or I will be at least. That was the worst one I've had," Harry wasn't sure if that would reassure his friends at all but they didn't ask him anything more for a while and Draco gave his shoulder a squeeze, the first time that he had done so for Harry. Harry got ready for breakfast quickly realising he was the last one up.

"Okay. If you don't hurry up there won't be much breakfast left," Ron informed Harry quickly and bolted out of the dorm soon after. Draco looked at Harry grimly.

"Are you certain? It seemed really bad," Draco asked worriedly. Harry smiled at him.

"Thanks for your concern, Draco, but I'm fine. If it happens again you will be the first one I tell. But for now, I would just like to go and have some breakfast before Ron eats it all."

Draco nodded and they left the common room together and headed for the Great Hall. Breakfast passed without incident and everyone received their timetables.

"Not a bad first day," Draco commented. "Double Defence Against the Dark Arts with Quirrell first, then Transfiguration with McGonagall followed by double Charms with Flitwick and then Potions with Snape. We don't have Herbology with Sprout or History Of Magic with Binns until tomorrow and Astronomy with Sinistra is on Wednesday night."

Hermione couldn't contain her glee. She was so excited to start classes that she left for the Defence classroom early. Harry laughed when he saw her practically run from the Great Hall. Draco and Ron were still not impressed with her at all. It wasn't long before they, too, made their way to the Defence classroom to find Hermione already in her seat and set up for the class. Harry smiled at her and sat next to her, getting everything he needed out. He also kept his pouch in his pocket just in case. Draco sat next to him and Ron, next to Draco. The room looked much like a Muggle lecture hall; with the rows of seats going up and there was a stage at the bottom of the room.

Before long Harry noticed the classroom fill up with people from every House. He leaned over to Hermione and whispered, "I thought this was meant to only be two Houses at a time." Hermione looked at her timetable and looked puzzled.

"Well every other class is split up. I wonder why this class is different." Before they could speak any more Quirrell entered the room, looking slightly dazed.

When he reached the stage, he looked out at the First Years with a determined look on his face. He waved his wand once and something rose in front of everyone's desk. It looked to Harry like a Muggle television but he knew they didn't work in the Hogwarts Castle due to some type of ward. Harry soon realised that he could see Professor Quirrell a lot easier on the screen than he could be looking at him from afar.

"Before we begin the class I need to call the roll and then I wish to speak to you all," Harry found out with that opening statement that he could hear Quirrell quite clearly, apparently due to the television-esque thing. Quirrell quickly marked the roll and, seeing no one absent, he started talking again. "You are all here in Defence Against the Dark Arts to learn just that, ways to protect yourself from the Dark Arts. I will have you know that I don't hold your 'textbooks' in very high regard in this class. I expect you all to read through it, however, as you will need to in order to actually complete the course." Harry heard Hermione let out a small whimper.

"However, I firmly believe that what is in those textbooks will do little to actually protect you against the Dark Arts. What you _need_ to learn here in this class is defensive and offensive skills to use in a time of crisis. You _need_ to learn how to not only protect yourselves but others as well. You _need_ to learn how to fight against an opponent as well as defend. You will find that, in my classes, you need not bring anything except your wand from now on. You will not have a book handy when you are in battle. You will, I would hope, have your wand handy so that is what I plan on focusing on for your first-year. Professor Dumbledore agrees with me on this. That is partly why your class is full of everyone in your year and not just half.

"I know, better than most, the prejudices that exist in the Hogwarts Houses and I also know that they will not go away, at least not soon, so I may as well use that in my favour. But that is for a different time." The class was silent through the whole speech as it continued.

"Now, despite my wanting not to have to, we have to start off this lesson by learning some simple spells as most, if not all of you, have no experience with a wand. The first spell I intend to teach you is very simple. It may serve no purpose other than to help you get used to your wands but at least it will do just that. I would like two volunteers to come up and demonstrate the spell." Everyone in the class raised their hands.

"How about ... Mr Potter and Mr Malfoy? Would you please come to the stage here?" Quirrell asked as Harry and Draco grinned at each other. They leapt to their feet, wands in their hands and scrambled to the front of the room and on to the stage. When they got there, they eagerly watched Professor Quirrell. "Good. Now, the spell I want you to cast at each other is just a 'colouring charm'. A colouring charm is a spell which changes the base colour of another object, in this case a human being. For today we will use the colour blue. This spell does not harm you in any way at all. Now, stand at either end of the stage," He motioned Harry to go to one end and Draco to the other. "Good. When I say 'go' I want the both of you to send the spell at each other. The strength of your spell will be shown in how blue your opponent becomes. The incantation is ' _Caesitas_ '. No wand movements. Just aim and shoot. Okay ... go!"

Simultaneously Draco and Harry pointed their wands at each other and shouted, " _Caesitas_!" There was a small burst of blue light, almost like paint flying through the air, and each boy turned a shade of blue. The class laughed at the two boys at the front. It wasn't long before Harry and Draco joined in. Professor Quirrell showed no change on his face.

"Very good. Five points each to Gryffindor," Quirrell then turned and regarded the whole class. "My observations say that Mr Malfoy is a darker blue than Mr Potter but not by very much. So that could definitely mean that Mr Potter is marginally stronger than Mr Malfoy, at least magically, but there are other reasons why this result could have been shown. Can anyone tell me the reasons?" Hermione's hand shot right into the air followed by a few others, "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Draco's spell may not have hit Harry as directly as Harry's hit him, sir," Hermione said with a slight smile on her face.

"Very true, Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindor. But there is one other reason. Can anyone tell me what it is?" No one put up their hands for a few seconds before Nikolas Riander put his hand up timidly. "Mr Riander?"

"Well, sir," the young Slytherin's voice was wavering slightly. "My parents told me that colouring spells are slightly different to other spells because the intensity with which the person casts the spell, the more pronounced the colour will be on the opponent. In other words, the louder and clearer you say the incantation, the more colour will be shown."

"Correct Mr Riander. Ten points to Slytherin. Now that you all know, you may come to the front, pair off and practice the spell," Professor Quirrell told the large class before they all stood up at once and got to the front and practiced for about fifteen minutes. After that time, Harry noticed that his spell still seemed to be stronger than anyone else's. Other than Draco, Zabini was also able to get fairly close. That, funnily enough, didn't surprise Harry at all. Hermione and Ron did very well too and were close to the top of the class. Harry noticed Neville Longbottom having difficulty with his spell. When everyone sat back down Professor Quirrell got to the front and everyone watched their screens again.

"Now that everyone can do that spell properly, now might be the time to introduce a more advanced spell. One you wouldn't normally learn until almost your fourth year at Hogwarts." Some people in the class gasped and Hermione let out an excited squeak. "You see, I believe the people who tell me what to teach underestimate you. I believe that you can all do this spell even being as young as you are. Perhaps not today, but eventually you will be able to. The spell I wish to teach you is the Shield Charm. If powerful enough it can stop most minor curses and even some major ones. But even the most powerful Shield Charm will be useless against the Unforgivable Curses, so don't think this will save you all of the time. Of course, we are only working with colouring spells for now and they are some of the weakest spells around as they do very little to harm an opponent.

"If cast correctly, the Shield Charm can deflect curses back at the sender. It can't always do so effectively, but it can be done. It depends on a lot of factors. Before I make any of you try I will demonstrate as there is a slight wand movement involved. Mr Macmillan, can you please come up here and face me at the other end of the stage please?" Ernie, representing Hufflepuff, went to the stage nervously and faced Quirrell. "Good. Now on the count of three, I want you to send your blue spell at me and I will block it. Ok?" Ernie nodded so Quirrell continued. "Good. 1 ... 2 ... 3!"

" _Caesitas_!" Ernie yelled, the spell leaving his wand and hurtling towards Quirrell.

Very quickly, Professor Quirrell waved his wand in front of his body and shouted, " _Protego_!" and a translucent, blue wall came up in front of him. Ernie's spell hit the wall and rebounded on Ernie himself, turning the young Hufflepuff blue.

"Good work Mr Macmillan. 5 points to Hufflepuff. You can have a seat now," Ernie did so, still very blue. Not quite as blue as he would have been had it been Harry's spell cast but still blue nonetheless. "As you all just saw, I successfully demonstrated the Shield Charm. You heard the incantation, ' _Protego_ ' and saw the wand movement. Now, regarding the movement, it does not have to be exactly like mine was. In fact, the movement can be in any way. But the catch is, wherever you move your wand is where the shield will cover. So, in essence you could cover your whole body if you had enough time. Now, I am going to pair you off this time so you can all work with someone different from another house," he then went on to announce the pairs. Harry was paired up with Lisa Turpin from Ravenclaw, Hermione was put with Zacharias Smith from Hufflepuff and Ron with Justin Finch-Fletchley who also came from Hufflepuff. Draco got the worst partner by far. He was paired with Zabini. To Draco's credit he didn't complain. Zabini was ecstatic that he was paired with Draco. _Probably so he can gloat and make fun of Draco_ , Harry mused silently.

The shield charm practice went very well, with only seven students unable to perform it at all. Harry, however, got it right his very first time. This actually made Professor Quirrell show some surprise on his usually very emotionless face. After Lisa had sent the spell at Harry and he blocked it, there was not even the slightest hint of blue on his body. No one else in the room, with the exception of Professor Quirrell himself, was able to block the spell entirely. Some always seemed to get through the shield, turning the shield blue.

"Impressive Mr Potter. Five points to Gryffindor. But I want to test this further." He turned to where Hermione was watching on. "Miss Granger, your spell was stronger than Miss Turpin's earlier. Can you cast yours at Mr Potter so we can see if he can fully block it?" Harry blocked it. He then proceeded to block Ron's, Ernie's, Draco's and Blaise's. Professor Quirrell actually looked amazed.

"Well, Mr Potter. As you can't cast the spell at yourself perhaps it is my turn to try and break your defences?" Quirrell actually smiled, "On three. 1 ... 2 ... 3!"

" _Caesitas_!"

" _Protego_!"

To everyone's amazement, Harry was able to block even Professor Quirrell's spell entirely. "Well then. Let that be yet another five points Mr Potter. I must say, I am very impressed. Not many can do that on their first try, let alone a First Year. Good work."

It was not long after that, that it was time to move on to their next class. Harry was very proud of himself and told his friends they should be proud of themselves as well. They were at the top of the class that lesson as well. Until he said that, all three of them seemed put out. They all cheered up after he told them how great they did.

The next class was Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall who was every bit as strict as she appeared before, and in fact during, the feast. It was all theory for the first lesson as they had to spend quite a bit of time working on the rules and laws to do with Transfiguration before they could work on actually transfiguring things. The best moment of that class was when McGonagall changed into a cat and back, much to the delight of everyone present. As it turned out, Professor McGonagall was what was known as an Animagus, a person who can change into an animal. Harry wondered if Professor McGonagall was the witch who visited his mother when she was told that she was a witch. The class groaned when she told them they would only start learning about Animagi in their fifth year, at the earliest.

Professor Flitwick, a very short man with short black hair and a very high-pitched voice, almost fell off the pile of books he was standing on when he marked Harry Potter as present. He then proceeded to talk about Charms class and do quite a bit of theory. They wouldn't have to wait as long to start the practical side as they needed to in Transfiguration which made the class happy. Harry couldn't wait to make something fly.

Decidedly Harry's least favourite class was Potions and, as such, his least favourite teacher was Professor Snape. For starters, Potions was held in the dungeons which Harry thought was very creepy. When Snape slammed the door open and entered the room Harry could actually feel some form of hate there. It was unnerving.

Professor Snape did not say a word about his class until after he took the roll call for the class, which the Gryffindors had with the Slytherins. When he reached Harry's name he glared at the boy for quite a while. When Harry looked into Snape's grey eyes at that time, all he could see was hate. Pure hatred. _I couldn't have done anything yet, surely?_ Harry thought, feeling quite confused. When Snape finished calling the roll he started a speech.

"You will not need your wands in my class unless I tell you that you do," Snape started with, drawling at the class. "Because of this fact, some of you will hardly believe that potion-making is at all anything to do with magic. But it is, so deal with it. In this room, I can teach you to do almost anything with potions. Anything at all. Potion-making is a subtle and exact science and it can be difficult to perform correctly. Deadly, in cases, if you get it wrong. I don't expect any of you to ever understand the beauty of a cauldron, filled to the brim with all manner of objects, simmering away, emitting fumes. Potions can do anything at all. Bottle fame, brew glory and even stopper death. Sadly though, there will be quite a lot of you who do not have the brains to be able to make potions at all."

The class was silent. The Slytherins were in awe of their Head of House and the Gryffindors were observing the man who, they had been told by a number of sources, hated all Gryffindors and favours Slytherin over every other house.

Snape then quickly looked at Harry, anger flashing in his eyes for some unknown reason.

"Potter!" he shouted angrily, his eyes flashing. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

 _I know this_ , Harry thought happily, _though it isn't a First Year potion_. _What's Snape playing at?_ "A sleeping potion. I believe it is known as the Draught of Living Death, sir."

Snape snarled at him, almost growling. "Where would you look if I told you to find a bezoar?" Snape asked angrily and quickly.

"Inside the stomach of a goat, if I'm not mistaken, sir. Also, probably in one of your cupboards too," Harry replied coolly as he saw Snape get angrier. Harry noticed a smile on Hermione's face and a smirk on Draco's. Ron looked utterly frightened.

"Five points from Gryffindor for your cheek! What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?" Snape asked with a sneer, obviously thinking he had Harry on that one. Harry decided to have a little fun and plastered on a quizzical look.

"Oh. Give me a second sir, I know I read this." As Harry was talking he felt Hermione's hand go up near his ear. He also noticed a faint sneer on Snape's face. "Um ... Oh wait. They're the same thing aren't they sir? And can also go by the name aconite as well, I believe."

Snape did growl that time. He asked Harry three more questions before finally giving up. "Five points from Gryffindor for being a know-it-all. And another five for your cheek. And another five for still having your wand out. Put it away Potter!"

Harry was fuming. He could hear snickers coming from where Nott and Zabini had sat. He looked around at Hermione and Draco who looked quite angry as well.

The rest of the lesson was no better to the start. They had to mix a potion which would cure boils. Neville had melted his cauldron and someone in Slytherin, Harry couldn't tell who, had their potion blow up in their face. At the end of the lesson Harry felt a lot better knowing what was coming.

He made sure to pack everything into his pouch neatly and helped Draco and Ron clean up. The two still didn't get along but Harry didn't mind because he knew it would just take time. Hermione waited for them before they all left, though Harry figured she was only really waiting for him. Draco and Ron were still very cold towards her.

At the end of the corridor leading out of the dungeons they saw a man with a very long, silvery-beard waiting for them.


	12. The Past

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER NINE —

 _The Past_

Harry felt a strange mingling of fear, anxiety and joy as he looked at the old man with the long silvery beard and golden, half-moon glasses. He was somewhat apprehensive about what he was going to be told. He knew, of course, that the Headmaster was going to tell him about his, Harry's, own past, yet he wasn't entirely sure what that past would be or whether he would even want to know. The man who many considered to be the greatest wizard alive, Albus Dumbledore, stood in front of Harry, Draco, Hermione and Ron smiling, his blue eyes twinkling amazingly. Harry felt like he could trust this man with anything in the world.

"I trust you all had a pleasant Potions lesson?" the Headmaster asked happily as the boys snorted and Hermione cringed slightly.

"Yes, of course, sir," Harry replied without even the slightest hint of sarcasm in his voice. Dumbledore gave no indication that he suspected Harry was lying.

"Fantastic. Shall we go?" Dumbledore asked, motioning in the correct direction. "I do hope that you are enjoying Hogwarts. I know I always do and likely always will."

"Oh yes, sir," Hermione said quickly as she tried to keep up with the others. "I would never have imagined such a magnificent place even existed, let alone be so awe-inspiring."

"It's great Professor," Harry said with a grin. "A lot better than staying at the Dursleys' anyway." When Harry finished talking Dumbledore seemed to look back over his shoulder, almost stopping in the middle of a corridor, the twinkle gone from his eyes.

"It may well have been good that you wanted to talk to me after all," Dumbledore said with a slightly grave tone to his voice. There was an awkward silence for a few moments. Dumbledore eventually broke the silence. "You met Hagrid on the boats, did you not?"

"I think so," Harry replied. "The big man?"

"That's him," Dumbledore said fondly. "I'm sure Hagrid would be overjoyed if you would take some time out of your busy schedule to visit him. He knew your parents well and even, I understand, knew you when you were just a baby."

"I'll make some time," Harry replied. "Maybe he can tell me stuff about my parents."

"I'm sure he has many a tale to tell you," Dumbledore said with a twitch of his moustache. Harry noticed out of the corner of his eye that Draco was looking distinctly uncomfortable.

"Charlie knew Hagrid," Ron put in suddenly. He recognised the confused looks on their faces. "My brother. He said Hagrid really enjoyed working with creatures."

"Your brother is correct," Dumbledore replied. "Hagrid does so enjoy animals. Mostly of the dangerous kind."

He stopped suddenly in front of a pair of almost identical stone gargoyles.

"I trust you four can keep my password to yourselves?" Dumbledore asked, receiving four very eager and awestruck nods. Dumbledore looked back at the gargoyles and spoke cearly, "Mars Bar."

Harry and Hermione chuckled at this but Ron and Draco looked perplexed. What happened after the password was said was quite amazing. The wall between the gargoyles seemed to spin around until there was revealed a large spiral staircase. Dumbledore motioned for them to step on to the staircase before getting on himself.

Harry started to walk up the stairs but he felt a firm hand hold him back. He jumped slightly at the touch before turning around to see Dumbledore's smiling face and he felt a lot safer. To the four First Years' collective amazement the stairs began to move, appearing to clime upwards until they reached a door and the staircase slowed down slowly. Harry was closest to the door, so he walked through it first, seeing a second door right in front of him, however this time he waited.

As Dumbledore opened the second set of doors with nothing more than a slight push, Harry goggled at the sights within the Headmaster of Hogwarts' office. It was full of interesting and peculiar-looking objects. There were all manner of things floating around the room, a lot of books sat at odd angles on mismatched wooden bookcases and quite a number of paintings, all of which had occupants who appeared to be sleeping. There was so much around him, fighting to catch Harry's attention, but none more so than the large red and gold bird perched behind a large wooden desk on a gold-plated perch. Harry's breath appeared to have been taken away at the beauty of the bird. He soon realised that he had been staring at it for quite some time. Dumbledore seemed to notice as he went up to the bird and began stroking it lightly.

"I see you are admiring Fawkes, Harry," he said, a hint of pride in his voice. "Ah, many people do so as it is extremely rare to see a phoenix so closely bonded with a human as Fawkes is with myself."

"A phoenix, sir?" Hermione asked wondrously echoing Harry's own thoughts.

"A magical creature with many magical properties, too many to list right now, in fact, but I can tell you the most well-known," Dumbledore replied. Hermione looked on with complete attention. "For one, their tears have healing powers. They can heal most anything given that their tears can reach the wound. For another, it's song is very calming and has been known to help cure some mental disorders when it sings to people with these disorders. Alas, there are some afflictions that are incurable, even for a phoenix. I learned that, myself, the hard way.

As though on cue, as Dumbledore stopped talking, Fawkes opened his beak, looked to the sky and began to sing the most wonderful song Harry, and he was certain all of his friends, had ever heard. Harry had never felt so calm and serene before in his entire life. It was as though nothing in the world could ever go wrong again. He looked over to see his friends clearly felt the same way. Draco had a particularly calm look on his face. When Fawkes finished his song after less than thirty seconds, everyone's faces fell slightly, but for some reason it was Draco that was most affected.

"Perhaps we should get started," Dumbledore said after a moment's silence. "It would not do for you to go about your life here at Hogwarts without knowing all of the facts. I am certain that at least Mr Weasley and Mr Malfoy know what I am about to tell you."

Dumbledore waved his wand silently and suddenly four padded armchairs appeared out of nowhere and landed on the floor. Harry sat between Draco and Hermione while Ron sat next to Hermione on the other side.

"I think they do, Professor," Harry said, suddenly feeling quite nervous. "Draco was actually the one who told me I was famous for some reason, but he wouldn't tell me why."

"I thought someone who knew more about it would be better of telling him," Draco said. Dumbledore smiled.

"A very good idea, Mr Malfoy," he said. "What about you Miss Granger? You are Muggle-born, so you may not, but have you heard of Harry's tale before.

"Only some of it," Hermione admitted. "I overheard some older students discussing it last night."

"I thought as much," Dumbledore replied. "Even if you had heard more, it was likely distorted in the telling. All stories end up that way in the end. Though this one less than most.

"It all began in the early 1970's," Dumbledore began, as though he were reading a story to his grandchildren. Harry even felt that way, though he couldn't shake the dread and nervousness he felt. "A wizard, known as Lord Voldemort," Ron and Draco cringed at the name, and Harry looked at them, confused, but Dumbledore continued as though nothing had happened, "had begun his attempt to take over Wizarding Britain. You see, as in all societies, there are those who take a dark and evil path. Unfortunately for Britain, Voldemort," Ron and Draco cringed again, "was, arguably, to become the darkest wizard of all time. Darker even than my greatest foe, Gellert Grindelwald.

"Lord Voldemort," the two boys cringed again, "was a firm believer in a great many things, perhaps none more so than the idea of blood supremacy. In Voldemort's -" at this cringe, Dumbledore broke off speaking, a strange smile on his face.

"Mr Weasley and Mr Malfoy, may I ask why, exactly, you both are cringing?" Dumbledore calmly asked the two seemingly frightened boys. Ron spoke up in barely a whisper.

"You ... you said ... his name ... You-Know-Who's name." Harry then realised that Voldemort was the wizard Draco was talking about at the feast.

"I did indeed," Dumbledore replied. "'Lord Voldemort' is the name that he goes by. I believe that it would be good for you both to attempt to not cringe any further. 'Lord Voldemort' is but a name. A mere name. Why should you be frightened of something as simple as a name?" It was Draco who spoke this time, speaking louder than Ron had.

"We know the ... stories, sir. My parents are even afraid to say his name. They call him 'The Dark Lord' but never V-V-V-Voldemort," Draco shuddered as he said the name while Dumbledore beamed. Ron cringed again.

"Good for you, Draco, if I may call you that," Draco nodded with a slight smile. "Thank you. Mr Weasley, I would very much like it if you could try to refrain from cringing at the sound of the name Voldemort. He is, so very unfortunately, an integral part of this story. As I will always say his name, you should get used to it now." Ron nodded solemnly. Harry looked at Hermione who looked just as perplexed as he did.

"Moving on, then," Dumbledore said in a more jovial voice, though it soon took a darker turn once again. "In Voldemort's opinion those with magical blood should govern all worlds, not merely their own. It was this misguided belief which led to his killings being almost always Muggles or Muggle-borns. In some cases, he would attack those that he deemed 'blood-traitors', which are half-bloods or even pure-bloods who associate themselves with Muggles or simply opposed him." Harry was shocked. "This is why his kills were almost always Muggles or Muggle-borns or, in some cases, people that were known as 'blood-traitors', which are pure-bloods who associate themselves with Muggles." Harry looked shocked.

"Kills?" he asked in a small, high-pitched voice. Dumbledore nodded gravely.

"Sadly, Harry, yes. Voldemort, over the course of about eleven years killed hundreds, if not thousands, of people. Be they Muggles or people of magical descent. It was a reign of terror that went on for far too long. Even his followers, the Death Eaters, were not immune to Voldemort's wrath."

Harry heard Draco let out a slight growl at the sound of the name of Voldemort's followers. Harry reached over and squeezed his friends forearm. Draco looked at him gratefully while Harry saw Dumbledore watch them curiously.

"You see, Harry," he continued, "Voldemort had no one. No family. No friends. No one at all. He believed that all that was needed in life was power, and he did have that, but he also did not have what he wanted."

"What was that, sir?" This time Hermione spoke up.

"The Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore said simply. "He wanted total control over the wizarding world and he would have gotten it had someone not stopped him." Harry and Hermione were focused intently on Dumbledore and didn't seem to notice the awed stares from Ron and Draco directed at Harry.

"Who stopped him?" Harry asked, rather enthralled by the story, as terrifying as it was.

"You did, Harry. You stopped him."

The silence in the Headmaster's office was deafening and Harry's mind was swimming with everything he had just heard. _Me?_ he thought, wondering if Dumbledore was off his rocker. _How could I have stopped him? I didn't even know about this world until a month and a half ago_. After a minute, Dumbledore spoke up again.

"I need to tell you the full story, Harry," Harry nodded, not trusting himself to speak. "You were born to Lily and James Potter on July 31st, 1980. At that time, Voldemort was experiencing his most fruitful year yet. He was very close to securing the Ministry as his own. In fact, on the very day he disappeared he had actually managed to take over Hogsmeade, the village just outside of Hogwarts, and probably would have attacked Hogwarts itself after that. There were few people left actively opposing Voldemort at that point and those that remained were considered by Voldemort to be mortal enemies and, so, were mostly in hiding. There were some of his enemies that remained, however, and for Voldemort to be truly satisfied he felt the need to eliminate the threat they posed to him." Harry didn't like where this was going and he felt his stomach drop.

"My parents were enemies of Voldemort's weren't they, Professor?" Harry asked, dreading but already knowing the answer.

Hermione gasped and grabbed Harry's hand. Harry could feel she was shaking, but then again it could have been him. He felt grateful for the touch. He needed it to get through this. Dumbledore had a very sad look in his eyes, the twinkle gone.

"Yes, Harry. I'm afraid they were," Dumbledore said. His face had fallen, and Harry had never seen the old man look so upset. "He was angered by the fact that they had escaped his grasp three separate times. So, on October 31st, 1981, Halloween, Voldemort decided to try once more to kill your parents, but he put a lot more effort in this time around. Now, Harry, here is where the stories become sketchy at best. I have been told by many of their neighbours that, when Lord Voldemort arrived at your house in Godric's Hollow, your father decided to try and head him off. Being trained as an Auror, James was one of the most capable to fight Lord Voldemort but even that wasn't enough. After some time, James was overpowered and was killed in the fight."

Hermione squeezed Harry's hand, and he looked at her to see a mixture of terror and concern on her face. Draco and Ron were both staring at the Headmaster.

"Now, from what I can gather, James must have told Lily to leave with you. Why she didn't leave the house, I don't know. Perhaps Voldemort put up an anti-Apparition field. But that is irrelevant, as she did not leave regardless. The next part of the story is more important. Lily was in your room with you when James was killed. Voldemort knew you would be inside so he went in. When he found the room in which your mother had you she tried to put up a fight and shielded you. In doing so, Voldemort killed her as well. She was found right in front of your crib."

Dumbledore stopped talking for a moment, as though he needed some time to gather his composure. It was clear that the Headmaster was affected by the story, as was Hermione, who, Harry noticed, had let two tars fall. Draco and Ron were both looking stoically forward. Harry felt his insides churn as he sat. Whether out of anger or sadness, Harry didn't know.

"After this, Voldemort looked to you," Dumbledore continued, back to his old self, as though the break had somehow reenergized him. "He looked at the face of a one-year-old child and he wanted to kill you. Harry, have you ever wondered where you got that scar?"

"Aunt Petunia told me once," Harry said in a small voice. "She said that it came from the car crash that killed my parents. Obviously she was lying to me, but I'm used to that by now."

"Well, it was most definitely not from any car crash," Dumbledore confirmed. "When Lord Voldemort attempted to kill you he used the unblockable Killing Curse and for some reason, unknown to anyone, myself included, it didn't work. It appears to have rebounded off your forehead and headed straight back towards Voldemort, destroying him in the process. Yet, you survived. You are the only person ever to have survived the Killing Curse. From that night onwards you were known as 'The Boy-Who-Lived'. You are, perhaps, the most famous person in the entire wizarding world, not just Britain. There is not a wizarding child who does not know your name or your story."

Harry tried to process everything he had just been told. His parents were both killed by the most evil man to ever have lived and Harry was the one who defeated him. It was with these thoughts that Harry realised that Hermione was still holding his hand. He looked at Hermione and saw that the tears had been wiped away from her face. When she looked at him he tried his very best to smile and she did too. No one in the room said a word for some time. When he finally began to feel a little better Harry spoke up.

"Thank you for telling me this, sir," Harry said sincerely. "I was hoping that we could talk about something else now." Harry had intended to sound confident, but he knew that it had come out soft and slightly scared. Dumbledore smiled at him and the twinkle returned to his eyes.

"Of course, Harry. Of course," Dumbledore said in a much more upbeat voice. "Perhaps you and Draco could tell me how you came to meet each other. If you don't mind my saying so, it is rather peculiar seeing you two as friends, given who your parents were."

"I very much agree with you, sir," Draco said, with a small smile on his face. "I hadn't intended to meet Harry at all. Father had told me to try and get Harry in my good graces, but I had not intended it to begin at Diagon Alley. When we met, I wanted to make Father proud. By the end of the day, I felt very differently about that. We had lunch and I can safely say it was the most important lunch I have ever had."

"I had a lunch like that myself once," Dumbledore said. "Though I was older than you are now. And much more foolish, I'm afraid."

Draco seemed to bite his lip for a moment before speaking again.

"Sir, I do have one problem that I could use your help with," he said.

"Whatever I can do, I shall," Dumbledore said curiously.

"I think that Father may disown me," Draco said quickly and ashamedly.

"Why do you say that?" Dumbledore asked, though Harry thought he already knew the answer.

"Well for one thing I'm in Gryffindor. Don't get me wrong, I really feel like it is where I should be," Draco said heading off the protests from Ron, "but Father always wanted me in Slytherin. There's also the case of the people I will be spending my time around. I think you know as well as I do, Professor, that as soon as Father finds out I hang around with Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger he will not be happy at all. I mean, Hermione is Muggle-born, which is more than enough to anger him. Father is always saying that the Weasleys are blood-traitors so he won't like that. And Harry is ... well, he's Harry Potter. Now I'm beginning to see that all of these things don't matter but my father will say otherwise." Draco finished with a weak smile directed at Harry.

Dumbledore thought for a moment about what Draco had presented him and sighed.

"I am afraid that you may very well be correct about your father." Draco nodded sadly and Harry wondered how anyone could be like that. "Very well, Draco, I will take what you have said into consideration and if the worst occurs I will make sure you have somewhere to go."

Ron and Hermione then recounted how they met Harry and Hermione even detailed their trip to what they were now calling the Slytherin Compartment. Dumbledore told them that there was not really anything he could do to them as they were not at school at the time but he advised them to stay away from the Slytherin group, and that they could come to him if something further happened. After a discussion about the wizarding world in general, more for Hermione and Harry's benefit than anything else, Dumbledore looked gravely at Harry.

"Harry, earlier you mentioned something about your family. I would like to hear anything you want to say about them right now, if you please. If you want your friends may leave –" Dumbledore spoke in a serious voice before Harry cut him off.

"No, Professor, they can stay. As you said, they're my friends and I trust them," Harry said with a crooked smile at all three of his friends.

"Okay Harry. I will respect your decision. But I really do need to know about your aunt and uncle, and even your cousin," Professor Dumbledore said seriously with absolutely no twinkle in his eye.

"Dudley's not so bad anymore," Harry said. "Honestly, you'd be surprised to see the changes ever since he heard I was a wizard. He used to be the main problem I had at the Dursleys', if I'm being honest. Mostly just punches and kicks, but it happened a lot. I just got used to it."

"You shouldn't have had to," Dumbledore said. "Continue. What about your Aunt and Uncle?"

"It's them I blame," Harry said. "They're always saying that they never actually wanted me. I mean, they never hit me like Dudley did. I don't think they'd have dared. Always afraid of what the neighbours would say. They did look away often enough, though."

Harry turned around in the chair so that his neck was facing Dumbledore and pulled his hair back, revealing a mark at the top of his neck slightly on the right side.

"Dudley put a poisonous spider in my bed one night," Harry said. Harry saw Ron suddenly look horrified. "His idea of a joke, I suppose. Usually I'm good with spiders, actually. Not this one, I'm afraid."

Hermione gasped and Harry felt fingers on the mark on the back of his neck, which he assumed were Dumbledore's.

"My Aunt and Uncle didn't believe me, of course," Harry said, trying his best to be flippant. This had all taken place such a long time ago that he had no reason to be upset about it anymore. "Actually, I think they were angry at me for getting blood on their sheets. It wasn't until I actually passed out that they phoned an ambulance." Noticing Ron and Draco's questioning looks, he explained further. "A Muggle ... healing vehicle, I suppose. Takes you to a hospital. Luckily, they got me there in time. Much later and I'd have died the doctor said. I think I was six when that happened." He let his hair fall back down and turned back around. Ron and Draco were looking at Harry with an odd look, while Hermione just looked shocked. Harry thought he could see sadness in Dumbledore's face.

"Why were you used to spiders?" Dumbledore asked, and Harry raised his eyebrows.

"My room used to have heaps of them," Harry told him. "I just got used to them, I suppose. They're nice enough, really."

Dumbledore looked at Harry questioningly, but Harry didn't know what the question was, and so he kept quiet.

"Did anything else happen?" Dumbledore asked after a moment. Harry wondered for a moment if he should say, but eventually decided that he could trust Dumbledore if no one else. He pulled his left pants leg up to his knee.

"This one was when Dudley stole a knife from the drawer where they're kept," he said, pointing out a long, thin scar. "I think Aunt Petunia might have seen him with it. I was just sitting on the grass when he came at me. She didn't do anything until he was cutting into my leg." Hermione gasped again. "Luckily it wasn't too deep. She managed to wrap it up, but complained that I ruined a perfectly good knife. I think that was when I was eight years old."

Harry let his pants leg down and looked up at Dumbledore who was looking sombre.

"Why did he do that?" Ron asked suddenly. "Your cousin, I mean. People don't just do that."

"He told me, actually," Harry said. "He reckons it's because his parents made him scared of me. They always used to get angry with him for being nice to me. In the end, he just figured being nasty was easier. I don't think he's all that bad."

"He cut you Harry," Hermione said softly. "That's pretty bad."

"I suppose," Harry said. "But he's changed. I swear he has."

"If you say so," Hermione said warily.

"There's one more thing," Harry said quickly after this. For a moment, he had questioned whether or not he should show them, but he had decided it was for the best.

Harry took off his robes and put them on the back of the chair he had sat in. Slowly he lifted off his shirt up to reveal a very skinny body. He felt good that no one could see his back at that point.

"Did they even feed you?" Hermione demanded.

"I think I'm just naturally skinny, actually," Harry said.

"Your father was exceptionally skinny as well," Dumbledore confirmed. "Go on, Harry."

Harry turned around and heard Dumbledore, Draco and Ron draw in breaths almost simultaneously. Hermione actually let out a sob.

"Oh, Harry," Dumbledore said sadly.

Harry knew the scars were bad but he had never really been able to see them himself. _Must be worse than I thought_ , Harry mused silently. Harry could feel fingers tracing his back as they had done his neck and wasn't sure whose they were but he didn't really care.

"Aunt Petunia wanted Dudley to learn how to ride a horse, for whatever reason," Harry said quickly, putting his shirt on. "They went all out, like usual. Bought him everything he needed. Including a whip. At first, I don't think Dudley realised he could use that on anything other than a horse. Then he started to hit things around the house. Blamed it on me, of course. Then when I confronted him about it, stupid of me but I was only nine, he just started trying to hit me. Got a few hits in before he really lashed me on the back. I think Uncle Vernon heard me screaming because he stopped it. The damage was done, though. It was the only time I ever saw Dudley get in trouble, actually. I think they were tired of Dudley doing things that forced them to get help for me."

Dumbledore had a look in his eyes that would have made Harry cower if he hadn't have known that he was angry at the Dursleys. He looked at Harry and spoke in a strangely emotionless tone. "Is that all they did, Harry?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Harry replied quickly. "I mean, I'd get punished for things that weren't really my fault, but they never actually hurt me. Well, Aunt Petunia does hit me on the back of the head from time to time, but never too hard."

Dumbledore looked upset more than anything else. The others were all looking at him as though they were shocked that he exists. Harry noticed that Hermione was affected the most, and there were tears on her face. He walked over to her and put an arm around her. Immediately she grabbed him around the shoulders and rested her head on his shoulder. Harry felt odd as he had never comforted a girl before.

"And you are certain that your cousin has changed?" Dumbledore asked sadly. "He wouldn't do these things again?"

"No, he wouldn't," Harry said. "I'm sure of it."

"I think I can trust your judgment on this matter then Harry," Dumbledore said quietly, "But what about your aunt and uncle?"

"Oh, as long as Dudley likes me, they won't touch me. Their Ickle Duddikins is an angel so what he wants, he gets." The last sentence was said so sarcastically everyone laughed, even Hermione who was still leaning on Harry's shoulder.

"Okay Harry," Dumbledore said, seeming to calm down. "Once more, I feel I must I trust your judgment. You know them better than I, though I still believe that I will have a talk with your Petunia and Vernon. I daresay there will be several people who will wish to join me when that day comes," Dumbledore said sadly. "I am afraid I must apologise to you, Harry."

Harry looked up in surprise, as did the others.

"Why is that?" Harry asked and Dumbledore looked at him guiltily.

"Ten years ago, after Voldemort had killed your parents, I had Hagrid go and pick you up from your house. He then took you to Number 4 Privet Drive where I was awaiting his arrival. When he got there, I left you on the front porch with a note telling your Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon what had happened. I felt that you needed to grow up in a Muggle household, away from our world, being who you are." The old man stopped for a moment before continuing. "Now I find out how they treated you. I expected love and I got hatred. I should have listened to Minerva." Dumbledore's voice sounded like he was almost pleading.

"Minerva, Professor?" Harry asked quizzically.

"Professor McGonagall, Harry," Dumbledore explained. "She took it upon herself to watch the Dursleys during the day before you were to live with them in order to find out what they were like and she told me that I shouldn't leave you with them. I know now I should have listened to her."

"Professor, you couldn't have known what they were like. They try their hardest not to show who they really are," Harry said, trying to reassure the older man. Hermione let go of Harry and sunk back into her chair. "I know you were doing what you thought was right and I don't blame you at all."

"I caused this, Harry," Dumbledore said. "I could have sent you somewhere else, but I insisted you be sent to them. Forgiveness is, I know from experience, hard to give."

"You didn't make these things happen, sir," Harry said with a smile. "It was all Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. It wasn't even Dudley's fault, really. They made him that way. But it's all fine now. As long as Dudley remains friendly, they will remain bearable. You shouldn't blame yourself. Blame them, like I do." Dumbledore smiled and his eyes twinkled yet again.

"If you say so, Harry," he said, sounding much better than he had moments before. "I believe I will. Thank you for alleviating an old man's conscience. But I must ask of you one thing," Dumbledore said looking intently into Harry's green eyes.

"Anything, Professor," Harry replied.

"Professor McGonagall needs to know of this Harry. She is your Head of House and she did try to look out for you when you were a baby. But the only thing I would wish of you, is to tell her yourself," Dumbledore said gravely.

"That's fine," Harry replied after a moment. "Can you get her now? I would rather get this over and done with so I can get some sleep. I'm feeling a bit tired." There were three murmurs of agreement from his friends and Dumbledore nodded.

"I can go and get her now," Dumbledore said. He then proceeded to look at Hermione, Draco and Ron. "Do you still want to be here when Harry goes through this with Professor McGonagall?"

Harry looked at his three friends hoping they would stay. His hope was not misguided as Dumbledore received three nods before walking to the fireplace in his office. He quickly threw some powder in the fire, causing it to change to an emerald green, and stepped right into the fire. Harry and Hermione gasped but Draco and Ron were calm. Another wizarding thing I guess.

"Hogwarts, Deputy Headmistress' Office," Dumbledore said and the flames leapt up. When the flames died back down, he had disappeared, much to Harry's amazement. He didn't have much time to be amazed, however, as Hermione looked at him.

"Oh, Harry it's all so horrible. How did you turn out so nice?" she asked quietly.

"To be honest, Hermione, I have no idea," Harry said after a moment. "I guess I just don't want anyone to feel like I've felt. It won't happen anymore though. I mean, Dudley's being nice. And I've got you three. I never really had friends before. Thank you all for being here." Draco looked at him and nodded.

"You're welcome Harry," he said. "Thanks for sharing this all with me." Harry nodded and looked at Ron who was beginning to talk.

"You know, Harry, before today I always thought you would have had the best possible life," he said slowly, as though trying to find the right words. "I mean you are the Boy Who Lived after all. I dunno. I'm not good at this stuff." Harry laughed.

"I get it, don't worry," he said.

No one said a thing for another five minutes while they waited for Dumbledore to bring back Professor McGonagall.

When the time finally came and Professor McGonagall stepped out of the fire, she scanned the room looking concerned.

"What has happened?" she asked no one in particular and got no response. It wasn't until Dumbledore stepped through that she got her answers.

It took a few minutes for Harry to go through everything, and by the end of it all Professor McGonagall actually swore, causing Hermione to gasp loudly and say, "Such language! And from a teacher!" Harry chuckled at that and even Hermione smiled.

Once Harry had his shirt back down, Professor McGonagall leaned against a nearby wall, her eyes making her look like a crazy woman and her hand clutching at her heart. Dumbledore then went on to explain the predicament with the Dursleys.

Professor McGonagall told them to skip dinner and that she would send food to their dorms with them. She also decided that, due to Hermione's emotional state, she would allow her to sleep in the boy's dormitory for one night only, though she was extremely reluctant and it took Dumbledore himself telling her it would be fine for her to let it happen. She told them that an extra bed would be made up next to Harry.

Oddly enough, when Harry finally slept that night, it was completely dreamless.


	13. Three Different Directions

— CHAPTER TEN —

 _Three Different Directions_

It was amazing how quickly Harry found himself getting used to Hogwarts and all of its eccentricities. Moving staircases, ghosts who could walk through you at any moment, paintings that move and talk. He took to it all with not a problem at all. Overall, he found the schoolwork mostly enjoyable and interesting. There were some classes which he had no desire to be a part of, but even they could at least be somewhat interesting, if not particularly fun. It was painfully obvious that Snape didn't like him and Harry, in turn, could not find it in himself to like Snape in the slightest. Mutual though their hatred was, it was sometimes intensely frustrating.

Though it took some time, Hermione seemed to come to terms with what Harry had told her and the others, thanks in no small part to Harry telling her time and again that everything was fine. Despite this, Hermione still kept close to Harry as though she was trying to protect him from a non-existent foe. Harry could tell that her intentions were good but thought that it wasn't entirely necessary.

It was Hermione's closeness to Harry that seemed to be fuelling Draco and Ron's dislike of her to a point where it was becoming very nearly unbearable. Harry knew that some people wouldn't always like each other, but when his three friends all seemed to hate each other, it was as though he were being pulled in three different directions. It wasn't even the dislike of Hermione that was the main issue. Draco and Ron simply detested each other. If they ever had to be in the same vicinity as the other person for any length of time, they would end up at each other's throats. They both liked Harry well enough, but they just were not compatible in any way. Nothing Harry did, and he tried a lot over that short period, would stop their animosity. On some days, Draco and Hermione would be on better terms, but on others they couldn't stand each other. Ron, on the other hand, gave no indication that he would ever be friends with either of them. Of the three, Hermione was clearly trying the hardest to like the others but each time her advances were rebuffed, Harry could see her resolve weaken. It reached the point where Harry was out of ideas and even if he had one, he would be hesitant to try anything for fear of risking his own friendship with any of the three of them.

"I don't know about flying," Hermione said nervously, wringing her hands. Harry snapped out of his thoughts and began paying more attention. The four of them were eating dinner at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. September was close to ending and, as such, flying lessons were starting very soon. "I mean, it seems so frightening. Broomsticks aren't very big, you know. I keep imagining I'll fall." Draco and Ron both snorted at that. Harry had learned that they had both had prior experience on broomsticks before.

"It isn't that bad Hermione," Ron said a little condescendingly. "You may not be able to learn it from a book but that doesn't mean it is bad."

"I never said it was bad, Ronald," Hermione said, raising her voice slightly. Inwardly, Harry cringed. Hermione only ever used Ron's full name when they were going to start arguing. "It's just that I'm nervous. That's all."

"Oh! Would you look at that!" Ron said sarcastically, loudly enough that the nearby Gryffindors turned to look. "The great Hermione Granger is nervous about something! Well, first time for everything. Might even get an answer to a question wrong one of these days."

"For your information, Ronald Weasley, I think getting answers right for once would do you some good!" Hermione retorted, her face tinging pink as she spoke. With that Hermione got up from the table and stormed out of the Great Hall. Ron's ears, like Hermione's face, had gone pink, and he looked furious. Harry looked at him, longing him to try. He was surprised to see Draco was actively glaring at Ron. Though this was a common enough sight, rarely did Draco glare on Hermione's behalf.

"Ron, I know you don't like her that much, but you could at least try to be nice to her instead of making her storm out every time you open your mouth. You're being a prat," Harry said quietly, hoping that this time Ron might listen to him. Harry pushed back his plate, stood and walked off to find where Hermione had gone.

Harry assumed that she would be in one of two places. Gryffindor Tower or the library. As the tower was closest Harry checked there first. At first, he checked Gryffindor Tower and found that she was not in the Common Room. As he couldn't check her dorm room, he left and headed in the direction of the library.

As he was walking down a deserted hallway, he saw Hedwig flying towards him with a letter attached to her leg. It was unusual for Hedwig to give him letters directly. Normally, like the rest of the owls of Hogwarts, she waited until the morning post. Harry smiled as Hedwig landed on his outstretched arm. He reached over and took the letter from her, noticing Dudley's handwriting. He and Dudley had been exchanging letters since the beginning of term, something which Harry was enjoying immensely. Harry let Hedwig nip him on the earlobe happily.

"Thanks, girl," he said fondly. "Go to the Owlery and get something to eat from there." Hedwig gave him a slightly contemptuous look, as though she believed that he should always have food for her on his person, before leaving. Harry laughed. _A bird just basically told me off_. Harry chuckled to himself as he tucked the letter away in his pouch and made his way towards the library.

On his way there, he ran into Neville holding a round ball which seemed to contain red smoke. Harry looked strangely at the item.

"Hey Neville," he said. Neville looked at him in some surprise. "What you got there?"

"Oh, hi, Harry," the round-faced boy said sounding, as he always seemed to, quite nervous. "It's called a Remembrall. It tells me if I've forgotten something. If it has red smoke within it, it means I've forgotten something. Gran sent it this morning. I'm going back to the tower to see what I've forgotten, but it might take a while. I saw Hermione leave earlier. Did Ron upset her again?" Harry nodded glumly.

"Yeah, he did," Harry said with a sigh. "I don't know what I'm going to do with him. I mean, he's my friend and all but he can't just keep upsetting Hermione like that. I'm going to see if I can find her. You okay to get back to the tower? You remember the password?" Harry knew that Neville was often very forgetful about things like that. He then saw Neville's face redden slightly.

"No, Harry. I've forgotten it again," Neville said quietly, obviously embarrassed. "Can you tell me?"

Harry put a hand on Neville's shoulder and smiled. "Caput Draconis. Don't be embarrassed. And don't be afraid to ask me for help either." Neville looked up at Harry and smiled. Harry thought it might have been the first time he had seen hi, properly smile.

"Thanks a lot Harry. And look!" He held out the Remembrall. "It's not red anymore. Thanks. See you later!" Harry watched as Neville walked away towards the tower, before leaving to find Hermione.

It didn't take long to reach the library and it took an even shorter time to find Hermione. Harry found her with a book in front of her, shielding her face. Harry walked over to her and pulled the book down, seeing that she had been crying.

"Wanna talk?" he asked, sitting across from her.

Hermione looked at Harry as if he had grown an extra nose or something for a few moments before wrapping her arms around his neck and sobbing into his shoulder. Harry silently held her for a minute until she calmed and moved back into her seat.

"Harry? You remember on the train? How I told you I had never had any friends before?" Hermione finally asked in a quiet, slightly shaking voice. Harry nodded.

"Of course I do." Hermione attempted to smile before continuing.

"Well the reason I had no friends was because no one had ever liked me before. I was always picked on for being a 'know-it-all' and a 'bookworm'. I know I am those things but ..." Hermione paused looking into Harry's green eyes. "They never even gave me a chance. Like Ron. The way he treats me is ... well ... like the way I was treated before coming here. I thought coming here would rid me of all of those problems but somehow, someway, it always comes back to people not liking me." Harry could tell she was opening up in a way she never had to anyone before and he let her continue.

"I know you like Ron and he is your friend, and I wish he would be my friend too, but I don't want to be treated that way. Even Draco treats me better than that. He may not like me all that much, though I don't know why, but he never really shows it and he definitely never argues with me like Ron does. I understand if you don't want to be friends with me. After all, I'm not really becoming friends with your friends so I may as well stay out of your way …" Hermione trailed off and let out a sniff.

"No, Hermione. You aren't going to stop being my friend because Ron doesn't like you," Harry said seriously. "He's being a prat. I told him so, actually." At that Hermione laughed. "I can't promise you that he'll come around but if he doesn't, then that's his problem. I like Ron and all, but he's getting on my nerves."

"Thank you, Harry," Hermione said, appearing to again be on the verge of tears. "You're my best friend, you know?" She sniffed again and swiped at her eyes while Harry felt his insides swell up. _A best friend? I have a best friend?_

"I've never had a best friend," Harry said quickly, with a smile. "I guess I never met anyone who ever wanted actually be my best friend."

"I expect Draco does," Hermione said. Harry thought for a moment.

"Maybe you and Draco will have to share it," Harry said with a laugh. "Actually, I think Draco might be coming around faster than I thought. When you left, you should have seen the look he gave Ron. I mean, it's much like the look he always gives Ron, but this time it was because of what Ron said about you. I think he's starting to warm to you."

"I hope so," Hermione said softly. "I can't stand all the arguing and fighting. Maybe I'll try and talk to him later."

"I'm sure that's a good idea," Harry said encouragingly, hoping beyond hope that at least some of the issues were disappearing. "Do you think you want to go back to dinner? You never did finish eating." Harry stood out of his chair and offered his hand. Hermione grasped it and Harry helped her up.

"Of course. But can we stop in at the bathroom so I can wash up?" Harry nodded and they set off. When Hermione had finished washing her face and they began walking towards the Great Hall, Harry saw a figure running towards them. Draco stopped when he came across them. Harry didn't think he had ever seen Draco as angry as he was at that very moment. Something about the look on his face sent shivers down Harry's spine.

"Are you okay?" Draco asked Hermione, sounding very sincere but also a little breathless.

"Yes, thank you, Draco," Hermione replied pleasantly.

"Well, I think both of you should know that Ron is in the Hospital Wing," Draco said slyly. Hermione gasped.

"Why's that, Draco?" Harry asked suspiciously, feeling a little worried about the tone of his friend's voice.

"Broken nose," Draco explained, trying to be nonchalant, but still seeming to Harry to just be fuming. "See, when you left he and I got into an argument and in the course of that I reached over the table and hit him square in the nose. Even after you had left he was continuing to say horrible things."

Harry shook his head, not knowing whether to feel proud or angry. Before he could make up his mind, however, he noticed Hermione walk toward the blonde-haired boy. To both Harry and Draco's surprise she reached out and hugged him.

"Thank you, Draco. It was absolutely stupid, and you should never do it again, but thank you." As the hug continued, Draco looked pleadingly at Harry and mouthed the phrase, 'what do I do?'. Harry let out a chuckle at Draco's expense and shrugged his shoulders. When she let go of the awkward hug Hermione asked, "So ... detention? House points?"

"Five points from Gryffindor and a detention with McGonagall," he said. "Could be worse, I guess." Hermione nodded and Harry was shocked. Hermione never let things like that go. Whenever Harry lost points he got a lecture, unless it was Snape of course. He wanted to protest but, given that the two of them were getting along, he thought better of it.

Ron was still not back with the others by the time dessert had finished, but Neville had appeared about five minutes after the three of them had walked back into the Great Hall. Neville sat opposite Harry and listened while the rest of them spoke. After some time, Harry asked Neville some questions, and he came to learn quite a lot about him. Neville spoke about his family, mostly. He explained that a lot of his family didn't think that he had any magic at all and sometimes they would shun him or make fun of him because of it. He had even insinuated that they might have done more, though he didn't elaborate. Harry actually thought that Neville's family rivalled the Dursleys at times.

Neville said that his Great Uncle Algie had been one of the worst, but still spoke about the man well enough. He said that Algie had been the only person in the family that supported his interest in Herbology, as Algie himself was involved in that field. Neville explained, in some detail, that Algie had travelled to Albania a few months before in order to study some of their native plants. Harry couldn't help but think that maybe Algie should stay in Albania.

The night was almost complete when Professor Dumbledore took to a newly created podium, something he had not done since the very first time Harry had set foot in Hogwarts. Everyone in the hall appeared to have the same quizzical look on their faces.

"Good evening," Dumbledore said warmly, ignoring the Hall's intrigue. "I know that this is most unusual, and I'm sure many of you are longing for your beds, so to that end I will attempt to get through my announcement as quickly as I possibly can. For those of you with friends who may not be with us at this very moment," Dumbledore's eyes flickered towards Draco for a split-second, "it would be most helpful if you could inform them of this announcement. As some of you may recall from the very beginning of this school year, I informed you all that the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side was out of bounds and I most cryptically suggested that you would all learn the truth as to why very soon. You need wait no longer to discover the reason."

A murmur broke out in the Great Hall which Dumbledore silenced after just a few moments.

"As you all undoubtedly know by this point, Professor Quirrell is a very firm believer in the practical aspects of his teachings in Defence Against the Dark Arts, a belief to which I also subscribe," he said to a now rapt audience. "Before term began, Professor Quirrell came to me with a most unique idea to allow for more practical training in not just Defence Against the Dark Arts, but in very nearly every other aspect of the school curriculum. I believe this idea to be rather phenomenal.

"The Defence Professor suggested that you participate in a series of obstacle courses, designed in such a way that you can gain practical experience in every aspect of your education." The murmurs started again and Dumbledore smiled. Harry wasn't entirely sure what to think. "Having never heard of such a thing before, I was naturally astounded and told the Professor to design the various courses.

"So, my dear students, you shall all have the chance to try something new and exciting this year. This is not mandatory, and is completely optional. You will not be graded for your involvement, but I cannot stress enough how important it is to have practical experience. You may all sign up in groups of four, no more and no less, though all four must be from the same year group, as the courses will all be specifically designed to cater for your individual skill levels. You may, however, all be from different Houses. The courses will be set up in various areas around the school and each group will be tasked with getting as far through the course as they possibly can in the fastest possible time. The group in each year to get the furthest through the obstacle course, in the quickest amount of time, will earn their team ten points and each contributing member of the group will also earn twenty points for whichever House they happen to represent."

The Hall had been buzzing for some time, but now there was a lot of chatter, which Dumbledore let die down before continuing with his announcement.

"Now, onto the actual obstacle courses," he said, and all sound stopped. "There will be seven courses set up around the school at various points over the period of the school year. These courses will be set up in the Great Hall, the Forbidden Forest, the Dungeons, the Black Lake, the Quidditch Pitch, the Grounds themselves and the third-floor corridor on the right hand side. The only course that will remain the same for all Year groups is the third-floor corridor, which is why I have told you all not to go there beforehand, so as to not have any foreknowledge of what is to come. Upon the completion of that particular course, you will get a spell put on you so that you cannot tell anyone about it who has not already seen it for themselves. This spell will wear off at the end of the year and will, of course, have no ill effects on you. As this course is the most dangerous, we have determined that the older students will participate first so that the younger students can have more of a chance to complete it by learning more throughout the year.

"While there are no set dates for when these Obstacle Course days will be, you can be assured that they will happen once a month and be on a Sunday," Dumbledore said. As it appeared that he was wrapping up, the Hall was in discussion again as he continued. "There will be no Obstacle Courses in January, as it is a holiday period, but there will be one in May a week or two before your exams. If you wish to sign up, see the boards in your common rooms. The sign-up sheets are there. The first of the courses will take place two weeks from this Sunday. Thank you all for your patience. If you so choose, you may now head back to your dormitories."

With that, Dumbledore sat down among the loud buzz of students talking at once. Harry looked straight to Draco and Hermione silently asking them, 'are you game?' and got two eager nods of approval. Harry was ecstatic. There was one problem, though.

"Well, that's three out of four," he said quickly. "We need a fourth. As much as I want to, I don't think we should include Ron. He doesn't like either of you two, probably more so now that you broke his nose, Draco." Draco beamed and Hermione muttered something that sounded oddly like 'Boys!'. Neville, who had not heard about the incident, looked shocked.

"You broke Ron's nose?" Neville asked Draco nervously. After Harry, Hermione and Draco explained everything that had happened Neville looked surprisingly angry. "Sounds like he deserved it. Hermione is the nicest girl I know," Neville said loudly before blushing, realising that Hermione was right next to him. "Not that I know many girls that well." Harry suddenly had a brainwave.

"Hey Neville," Neville looked up at him expectantly, "are you going to do this obstacle course thing?" Neville looked thoughtful for a minute before shaking his head.

"I don't think so Harry. I mean, whoever had me would be at a huge disadvantage," he said sadly. "I'm terrible at spells and making potions. I'm sure you noticed."

"Well, Neville, I have to talk to Ron before making a final decision but if he's still a massive prat I think it would be great if you were on our team," Harry told him as Hermione nodded quickly. Draco looked slightly apprehensive but still nodded.

"Yeah. I think you would be alright," Draco said slowly. "Besides, that way we can keep it all Gryffindor without needing Weasley or Seamus. As funny as he is, Seamus has a tendency to blow things up with even the simplest charms." He then let a broad smile cover his face. "At least you only blow things up in Potions." Neville looked slightly hurt.

"Well ... yeah ... but ..."

Before Neville could keep going, Draco realised his mistake.

"I was only teasing you," he said quickly. "I didn't mean anything by it."

Neville looked at Draco uncertainly for a moment before nodding. Harry wasn't sure if Neville really believed Draco at all.

When they left the Great Hall, Harry decided to check on Ron. Hermione and Draco both agreed that they weren't the best people to see Ron. Neville, however, had told Harry he would go with him. As they walked, Harry and Neville discussed the obstacle courses and what they might include. By the time they had reached their destination, their predictions were becoming outrageous, and the two of them were laughing very hard. Neville's last suggestion was that they might have to retrieve a dragon's egg from an actual dragon's nest. Both of them thought the mere idea was ludicrous.

The Hospital Wing was white. It was the only way Harry could describe it. The walls and floors were varying shades of white, but white still. Even the sheets on the beds were white. As a result, Ron's red hair stuck out like a sore thumb. Madam Pomfrey informed them that Ron was fine, but she still needed to perform a routine check before allowing him to leave her care. She decided to allow the two of them to have five minutes with Ron. The reception the two of them got was less than warm as Ron scowled at Harry the moment he saw him. Harry tried to keep his face impassive as he looked at his friend.

"So … I hear Draco hit you," Harry said, his voice flat.

"Nah, mate. I slipped over and hit his bloody fist with my nose," Ron said sarcastically, glaring at Harry. "What do you think happened? Of course he hit me!"

"Well, come on Ron, he had a reason," Harry said with a hint of steel in his voice.

"Oh yeah? And what's that?" Ron asked, sounding angry and bitter.

"Maybe because of what you said about Hermione," Harry said angrily. "I found her crying in the library."

"Well then, what I said must have been true," Ron said, with a bizarre hint of pride in his voice. "Otherwise it wouldn't have hurt her. Not surprised she ran straight to the library, mind you. Of course she'd go there. It's her natural habitat."

"Hermione's the nicest girl I know," Neville said suddenly before Harry could say anything to Ron. Probably for the best. Harry didn't want Madam Pomfrey to kick him out. "You lay there making fun of others when you got put in the Hospital Wing from a punch? You're weak. And pathetic."

Harry had never heard Neville speak like this before. With a sense of purpose and indignation. Ron turned a shade of purple that would have rivalled even Uncle Vernon's best efforts.

"I'm weak and pathetic, am I?" he spat. "At least I can actually do magic, you Squib!" Ron's voice seemed to exude hatred as he spat that last word. The room went deathly silent. Though he didn't know what the word meant, he was certain that it wasn't nice. All of the purpose and indignation fled Neville in that moment, and Harry heard him sob once before turning and running out of the room. Harry rounded on Ron and looked deep into his eyes, Harry's own looking like emerald fires blazing in his sockets.

"You ... stay away from my friends or you will live to regret it," Harry said quietly, his voice harsh. "Neville was right. You _are_ weak. Maybe you would be better off making friends with Blaise Zabini. He's more your type, I think. Stay away from me." After one final look into Ron's now fearful eyes, Harry turned and strode quickly out of the Hospital Wing leaving a very pale Ron behind. As he got out of sight he broke into a run, heading towards the Gryffindor Tower hoping nothing had happened to Neville.

When he got to the portrait of the Fat Lady he heard sobbing and saw Neville sitting on the stone floor leaning against a wall with his head in his hands. Harry sat next to him and put an arm around Neville's shoulders.

"It's alright. Why didn't you go inside?" he asked quietly, all the anger of just a few minutes before having left him almost entirely.

Neville muttered something that Harry couldn't make out but he assumed he said 'I forgot the password again'. Harry stood up and pulled Neville with him. He looked at the Fat Lady who said to them, "Tough night, I take it?" in her high-pitched voice.

"You have no idea. Caput Draconis," Harry said sadly and the portrait swung open. Harry looked at Neville. "You good to go mate?" Neville nodded mutely, no longer crying and Harry helped him into the Common Room as he was a little too short to get in by himself.

When they got inside they instantly spotted Draco and Hermione talking together on chairs near the fire. Hermione took one look at Neville, appeared to instantly know something had happened and leapt to her feet and ran forward and hugged him. Neville's eyes bulged and Harry couldn't help but let out a laugh. He even saw Draco trying to stifle a laugh of his own. Hermione lead Neville to a chair near the fire and sat in one herself before Harry sat in another. Neville still looked upset and was carefully studying the red carpet. Hermione noticed this and directed her next question solely at Harry.

"What happened?"

Harry recounted the whole conversation with Ron. Draco and Hermione were furious before Harry had even gotten to the part about what he had said to Neville.

"And then he went on about Neville and even called him ... a Squib," Harry said quietly watching Neville the whole time who showed no reaction. Hermione and Draco, however, had more than enough emotion.

"How could he?" Hermione breathed. "Neville isn't a Squib. Anyone can see that."

"Bastard," Draco muttered. Normally Hermione didn't like that type of language but she let it fly, Harry noticed. Draco looked at Neville and put a hand on Neville's forearm to get his attention. Neville looked up glumly. "Neville, he's wrong. Don't listen to him. He's an absolute prat. Don't even pay him the slightest bit of attention." Neville just looked at Draco, amazed.

"He could be right you know," Neville said morosely. "For years, my own family thought I was. A Squib, I mean. And ever since coming here I can't even perform the smallest spells that well. Even my colouring spell in the first Defence class was weak and that's one of the easiest spells to do," Neville sounded shaky and almost frightened. "You saw it. I was the worst in the class."

"But Neville, the point isn't that it was weak," Draco said. "The point is that it still worked. It wouldn't have worked at all if you were a Squib. Plus, you have a wand. Squibs don't get wands. They wouldn't work for them," Draco said. At Draco's words Neville's face seemed to regain colour and he even looked happier. Hermione spoke next.

"Yeah, Neville. I don't even think Hogwarts accepts Squibs. Ron and your family are absolutely wrong," she said with a smile. Neville began to beam before Harry spoke.

"Yeah, mate. You'll be fine," he said with his most reassuring smile. "We'll help you out. I bet you just need to believe in yourself a bit more. Do that and you'll get loads better." Neville beamed. "Feel better now?" Neville nodded.

"Thank you so much. All of you. I'll try to not let Ron or my family get to me anymore. But how will you help me?" he asked, raising his eyebrows slightly.

"Well, that's obvious, isn't it?" Harry asked with a smile while Neville looked perplexed. "We'll teach you everything you need help with. Well, everything that we can do. In return, all we ask is a little help with Herbology. Okay. A lot of help with Herbology. I'm not good with plants." Harry laughed and soon all four were.

"Where though?" Neville asked when the laughter died down. "The Common Room's too small and it's always busy. The dorms are even smaller."

"We'll come up with something," Harry said. "We'll talk to Professor McGonagall about it. She might be able to help. Actually, speaking of, I should probably go through some things with you. Draco and Hermione already know, so it's only fair that you know as well. Not tonight though. Saturday will be good. Tomorrow we'll go and see McGonagall to see what we can do for you."

As Harry finished speaking, Ron entered the Common Room through the portrait hole. Harry glared at him, as did Hermione, Draco and Neville. Harry thought it must have been that which made Ron look utterly frightened. He walked past them and almost ran up the stairs to the Dorms.

Some time later, before he went to sleep that night Harry decided to read the letter he had received from Dudley earlier.

 _Harry,_

 _I can't believe you actually get to go to a school as awesome as Hogwarts. I mean, it sounds like the most brilliant place ever. I know if I had a choice I would be there in a heartbeat. But I better not let Mum and Dad hear me saying that._

 _I hope that Snape guy isn't giving you a lot of grief. He sounds really evil. Although, what do you expect from someone who spends his days in the dungeons? You said that he is also the Head of Slytherin? That's the House where all the bad ones go right? Bet I would have been there had I gone a few months ago, wouldn't I?_

 _I'm glad to hear your friends are doing well. Although, it sounds like that Ron guy is a bit of a git. But you are really the authority on people these days, aren't you? I'm probably wrong about him._

 _By the way, I cannot thank you enough that you told your Headmaster that I was not to blame for everything that had happened to you and I want you to know how sorry I really am about all of that. I want you to let your friends know that as well. I hope to meet them someday. Maybe one of them can come and stay sometime in the holidays? Nah, I doubt it. Mum and Dad wouldn't have it._

 _Speaking of Dad, I thought I would let you know that he went to the Doctor yesterday and he was told that if he didn't start treating himself better he would have a heart attack. It made me really think about myself as well as him but he remains adamant that nothing is wrong. I hope so._

 _School is going well and I thought you should know that I have a new friend. I took your advice and made friends with a boy in my year who looked pretty frightened actually. His name is Chris Ludlum. He lives close so I can see him heaps. I don't think he has had many friends before. Thanks again Harry._

 _By the way, this owl of yours is very smart. She always waits for me to be alone in my room before showing herself. I think she knows what Dad would do if he saw her. Eat her probably!_

 _Anyway, I have written enough. I hope you write soon._

 _Dudley._

Harry put the letter in his magically expanded pouch, which he carried everywhere with him, and made a mental note to write back tomorrow after the meeting with McGonagall.

Harry felt a sense of pride when Dudley had mentioned his new friend. In fact, Harry recognised the name as a boy he used to play with whenever Mrs Figg took him to the local park. Chris Ludlum was the closest thing Harry had to a friend for many years and when Mrs Figg told him they were moving away, Harry was rather upset. For months afterwards he missed Chris. He was glad that Dudley was doing something for his old friend.

Harry was one of the last ones left in the Common Room when he left to go to bed in the dorm. When he got up there he saw that Draco was asleep. As was Ron which was good because Neville wasn't. He changed into his pyjamas and he and Neville talked for a while before Neville said he needed to sleep. Harry also felt tired by that point, so he put up no resistance. He didn't sleep well that night. He once again saw the familiar green light and heard the high-pitched cackle. He hadn't had the dream since before his meeting with Dumbledore.


	14. The Grounds

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER ELEVEN —

 _The Grounds_

Professor McGonagall had seemed rather surprised when Harry and his friends came to her with an idea to help a fellow student with their studies. However, because they had such noble intentions, she decided to grant them permission to use a disused classroom located on the second floor whenever they thought it was necessary. Within reason of course. She told all of them that if she found out that the room was being used for the wrong reason, any wrong reason, they would not only not be allowed to use it any longer but they would also receive detentions. All four agreed quickly and left Professor McGonagall's office to find the room in question.

When they got there and opened the door, they were surprised to see that the room was clean. There were some tables and chairs remaining from whenever it was that the room was last used, but there was no dust at all and the chalkboard was clean and new chalk was sitting on the larger teacher's desk, waiting to be used. The room must have been out of use for a long time as Harry found a very old, leather-bound book with the date 1848 written on the very first page in the drawer on the teacher's desk. He flipped through the book and found that seemed as new as the day that it had been left there. The title was _Wuthering Heights_ and was by someone called Ellis Bell. Harry had never heard of it, but put it in his pouch nonetheless.

Though Harry and Draco had been enthusiastic about helping Neville, it was Hermione who truly got into the spirit of the thing, as she had worked out everything that they were going to do. As well as helping Neville out with his classwork, she decided that they could all spend time attempting to learn from things other than their textbooks. In particular, she suggested the book Harry had bought due to Professor Quirrell's suggestion, _Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes_. Harry knew that most of the spells in the book were far and away too difficult for them to perform as a First Year, and some of them might even be too difficult for fully trained witches and wizards. He had, however, gotten a few of the smaller spells to work for himself, one of which being the Undetectable Extension Charm that Quirrell had used to expand Harry and Draco's pouches.

This spell, according to the book, had faded out of use as someone had created a spell that did the same thing, but also worked on much larger objects. Even though the old spell was much easier to perform, the newer one was largely accepted into society because of its effectiveness and, the book theorised, because the primary users were the people selling the objects who wanted higher sales and, so, didn't want everybody being able to do the spell themselves.

Harry had specifically tried to learn this spell as he had bought two pouches at the beginning of the year, one for Hermione and another which was originally intended to be for Ron but which would now go to Neville. Harry had approached Gryffindor prefect, and Ron's older brother, Percy about how he could buy things from Hogwarts given that he couldn't leave. Percy had informed him about how to use the Owl Post to buy whatever he needed and Harry did so immediately. He had yet to work out the charm to separate the extended pouch into easily discernible sections, and figured that if he couldn't work it out, he could always go to Quirrell.

Despite them not being finished, Harry had decided to give the pouches to Hermione and Neville, both of whom were stunned to receive any gifts from Harry for seemingly no reason and both had offered to get him something in return, which Harry had flatly refused. He explained that he just wanted to do something nice with the money had had to spare. There was the added bonus of the looks of jealousy and contempt from Ron who saw Harry give the pouches away. Harry knew that he shouldn't have, but he felt glad that these gifts were causing Ron some distress.

Harry was rather glad to be shot of Ron, all things considered. He much preferred Neville's company to his. Harry had also recently told Neville everything that he had spoken about in Dumbledore's office. Much to Harry's surprise, Neville reacted rather well. Where Draco had been angry and Hermione had been upset, Neville just seemed to take it all in his stride, doing nothing more than nodding. When they finished talking, Harry didn't know what to think of it. It had been some days later that he eventually talked to Neville about it.

"Are you okay with everything I told you the other day?" Harry asked as the Common Room was emptying. It was down to them, a few Seventh Years and Percy Weasley. "I mean, it's just that the others had bad reactions."

"No, I'm fine," Neville said, looking thoughtful. "I had similar experiences, that's all. Nothing as bad as all that, but similar enough. You remember I mentioned Great Uncle Algie?"

"Yeah," Harry replied.

"Well, the things he did to force magic out of me were pretty bad," Neville said. "He could have killed me. I think his heart was in the right place, but he's still family. I think going through that, and everything else that my family said about me during that period, made me different. Hermione and Draco … they never had to go through all of that, really. You and I did. Frankly, I was just glad someone else had the same sort of thing happen."

They didn't talk much after that. When Neville eventually went to bed, Harry sat and thought for a while before going upstairs, finding Neville sound asleep and then laying in his own bed, looking up at the ceiling for what seemed like a very long time.

The first Obstacle Course was fast approaching, so Harry and his friends were working hard, both on helping Neville get up to speed with everything that he needed to know as well as going over things for themselves. For an hour a day, Harry, Draco, Hermione and Neville went to their classroom and practiced whatever they needed to brush up on. Harry was surprised at how enjoyable these sessions actually were and he relished the time spent in that classroom.

Since it worked out that they were each proficient at different things, it all worked out rather well. Harry was good at Defence Against the Dark Arts topics, and so he helped the others with that. Hermione did the same with Charms and Transfiguration, Draco with Potions and Neville with Herbology. History of Magic was mostly avoided due to the fact that even Hermione found that particular class dull. It helped that there were no real practical applications, so it was unlikely to pop up in any of the Obstacle Courses. Astronomy was also omitted for the same reasons. Neville was only doing badly with the practical side of things, anyway, so it made sense to focus primarily on that.

By the end of their first session, with Harry's help Neville was able to penetrate Hermione and Draco's shield charms with his colouring spell, with the blue actually being very similar to the shades that Hermione and Draco were achieving. Neville was ecstatic and Harry hoped that this would somehow be a big enough boost for Neville to gain more self-confidence and improve in other areas.

Professor Quirrell had been teaching First Year students how to do the Disarming spell in classes the week before the first Obstacle Course was due to happen. In class, Neville was able to perform the spell weakly, but Harry thought he could do better. So, in the last session prior to the Obstacle Course, he worked with Neville solely on that.

"You've got it mostly right," Harry explained, after Neville was able to almost disarm Draco, though Draco was able to clutch his wand before it left his hand. "Hermione reckons you've got the incantation right, so it must be the wand movement."

"What do I do, then?" Neville asked. Harry was pleased to note that his voice was no longer tremulous or downtrodden like it was when they began these sessions. Though he still didn't sound confident, it was a step in the right direction.

"Watch what I do very closely," Harry said, taking Neville's place and aiming at Draco, who was standing in front of some cushions that Professor McGonagall had given them after an incident with the levitation charm landed Harry in the Hospital Wing. "Watch my hand, not my wand."

"Okay," Neville said, his eyes clearly on Harry's wand hand as Harry took a stance.

" _Expelliarmus_!" Harry shouted and a red bolt left his wand and struck Draco, who fell backwards as his wand flew through the air, landing on the floor across the room, narrowly missing Hermione's head, causing her to look up from her book.

"That's what I've been doing," Neville insisted.

"Okay, just do the hand movement," Harry said. "Not the incantation, just the movement."

Neville nodded and pointed his wand at a wall. Harry watched as he did the movement.

"I think I see the problem," he said quickly. "There's a very small flick at the end of the movement that you're missing. Like this."

Harry did the movement again with his wand. He did it a second time, exaggerating the flick.

"Try it again and try the flick," Harry said. Draco reassumed the position again and Neville pointed his wand.

" _Expelliarmus_!" he cried. The red spell hit Draco in the chest and his wand went flying.

"Good work!" Draco said with a grin. He had managed to keep his footing, but the spell had still worked.

"Spot on, Neville," Harry said, patting his friend on the shoulder.

"Can you do it again?" Hermione asked quickly. "I was reading and I missed it."

"How about you take my place," Draco said. "I'm getting tired of getting spells thrown at me, anyway."

By that lesson, Neville had also managed to levitate objects, though his spell was the weakest of the four. He was also moving along with his Transfiguration work. He was still having trouble with Potions but he was nowhere near as bad as he was before. It was well accepted that Snape was the cause of all of those particular problems. Snape had not let up since they arrived at the school, and Harry and Neville, for whatever reason, seemed to take the brunt of his anger. They often had points deducted and were given detentions seemingly arbitrarily. Nobody could work out why Harry was targeted in particular. Neville, at least, was bad in class. Harry was passable, and yet Snape seemed to simply hate him.

As well as the extra sessions, they also had a great deal of homework to be done and they also were participating in flying lessons. For Harry and Draco, flying lessons were a breeze, so much so that when they had their very first lesson even Madam Hooch mentioned that he was a natural. Hermione and Neville, on the other hand, weren't faring so well. Hermione seemed to worry constantly about falling off, while Neville was even worse as he was deathly afraid of heights. In the first lesson, Neville had panicked, flown too high in the air and lost control of the broom, crashing right into the ground, breaking his wrist in the process. Of course, the Slytherin contingent of Zabini, Nott and some others found this hilarious and, as a result, Hermione had to restrain Harry and Draco, sometimes even physically.

Zabini and Nott were becoming quite the annoyance to Harry and his friends. They appeared to be constantly making snide remarks about them all, whether it be to their faces or behind their backs. One such time happened just a few days prior, when the two had run into the four of them in one of Hogwarts' many hallways.

"If it isn't Potter and Malfoy," Zabini sneered as Crabbe and Goyle seemed to block any escape routes. "Oh, and their pets, of course."

"Look, we kind of don't have the time for this," Harry said exasperatedly. "I'm sure you've got something real smart saved up to say to us, but could you maybe save it for some other time?"

"We'll say what we want, when we want," Nott said menacingly. "And you'll like it."

"I find that hard to believe," Harry said, rolling his eyes. "What is it this time? I'm an orphan? Draco's a Gryffindor? Hermione's a Muggle-born? Neville's a Squib? Done all of those ones, I'm afraid."

"Speaking of you being an orphan," Zabini said with a smile. "I heard something about your father the other day. My mother heard it through the grapevine years ago what your father was actually like. An arrogant, self-serving bastard to the very end. Never cared about anyone, so they say. I mean, his body _was_ found outside of the house, wasn't it? Trying to run, I suppose. Left you and your mother alone to die, I expect."

Harry moved to run at Zabini, but Draco and Neville each grabbed an arm and held him back.

"Ah," Zabini said with a laugh. "Yes. The old Muggle fighting technique. All arms and legs, isn't it? Of course you'd be that uncivilised, Potter. Your mother was Muggle-born after all. That'd make you uncivilised, arrogant and self-serving, wouldn't it? I'd hate to be one of your friends."

"I'd hate to be them even if they weren't friends with Potter," Nott said with a smirk, looking from Harry to Draco, Neville and finally Hermione.

"So basically just the usual insults then?" Draco quipped. "What kind of Slytherins are you? Aren't you meant to gather information about your enemies and use it against them? All you have is information that either everybody knows or is untrue. You need to try better. Maybe ask Crabbe and Goyle. They look like they've got some rather good ideas."

At just that very moment, Professor Quirrell rounded the corner and asked why they were all congregating together in an otherwise empty corridor. The Slytherins just scoffed and walked away, so Quirrell looked to Harry.

"Nothing we couldn't handle, Professor," he said. Quirrell just nodded and walked away from them without a further comment.

Since the mention by Dumbledore, Harry had been to see the Groundskeeper, Rubeus Hagrid, a few times. After the first few times, he found himself heading there, not out of a feeling of obligation but because he had grown fond of the over-large man. Often Draco, Neville or Hermione would accompany, but until the day before the Obstacle Course, all four of them had not been together. They had all walked down to the hut after Harry received a letter from Hagrid that morning.

"So, Harry," Hagrid said, pouring the group some tea, "Tomorrow yeh have the First Obstacle Course? Yer ready for it?" Harry nodded and looked at his large, bearded friend.

"Yeah Hagrid. I think we are. We've been practising heaps in our classroom. I think we could be tough to beat," Harry said before turning to Neville. "Neville's been brilliant the past two weeks. He's improved a lot. He's almost caught up in Defence and Charms, which is great given how behind he had been," Harry patted Neville on the back as the round-faced boy blushed at the praise given to him.

"I would never have been this good if you all hadn't have helped me," Neville said in a quiet, shy voice.

"Nonsense," Hagrid boomed with a smile. "You woulda got there eventually Neville. Yeh just had a push is all. Yeh'll do great. I know yeh will. All of yeh." Hagrid pointed to each of the group. Hermione beamed like she did whenever a teacher had praised her. Draco nodded and had a small smile on his face. Neville was still blushing and Harry smiled and watched the three of them.

The conversation continued for another hour with topics ranging from classes to Quidditch and it wasn't long before Zabini and Nott were mentioned. Harry told Hagrid what the two had said about his parents. Hagrid was, predictably, outraged.

"They were only right about one thing," Hagrid said as he calmed down. "You are like them. In the best possible way. I knew yer parents better than most, and I see them both in you. Even if you didn't look like yer Dad, I'd see him in you."

Harry smiled at that.

"Gran used to talk about your parents," Neville said suddenly. "Apparently our parents were friends. She said we even played together when we were babies. I never heard a bad thing said about James or Lily Potter whenever she spoke about them. And Gran's hard to please, trust me."

Some time, and a rather substantial amount of near-inedible food, later Hagrid wished them good luck for the next day and Harry walked with his friends back to the castle where they had dinner, finished up some homework and went to bed, all four thinking about the first Obstacle Course. Harry didn't feel particularly worried about it. Until he woke up the next day.

After they all got ready, the group made their way nervously to the Great Hall. While there, Dumbledore made an announcement stating that no one who was to be involved in the First Year Obstacle Course could leave the Hall, as they were not allowed to see the Hogwarts Grounds. Nothing else was said on the matter as the Hall slowly emptied but for the groups of First Years participating. One team was taken out of the Hall and was already doing it, and Harry, Draco, Hermione and Neville were told that they would be going second.

The first team to tackle the Obstacle Course consisted of Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode. Given what Harry had seen of them in classes thus far, he didn't think that it was likely that they would do particularly well. He guessed that they might stumble on Charms and Transfiguration. Only Zabini was really good at those. Nott seemed to be alright at everything while Parkinson and Bulstrode were good at some, but not others. Harry had also decided that if there was anything that involved using their minds in any way, they would likely stumble as well.

Harry sat with his stomach churning lightly. The entire Hall seemed to be silent as they all nervously awaited whatever it was that was to come. Around forty-five minutes after the first group left, McGonagall re-entered the Great Hall with a remarkably impassive look on her face. As she walked towards him, Harry's heart began to race. He looked at his friends. Hermione and Neville looked nervous, but Draco looked composed. Harry knew this was a front, however. Inside, Draco was just as nervous as everyone else.

Bad thoughts seemed to flood into Harry's mind as McGonagall approached. _What if I make a fool of myself? What if I fail? What if something happens to my friends?_ Harry knew that his worries were irrational, but he couldn't stop himself from thinking them.

"Mr Potter, Mr Malfoy, Mr Longbottom and Miss Granger. Your group is next to face the Hogwarts Grounds Obstacle Course. Please follow me and I will give you information on what you will have to do today in order to complete the course," Professor McGonagall said to her House students before beckoning them to follow her.

They all walked nervously to the Transfiguration classroom and sat in chairs at the front of the classroom, close to where McGonagall was standing. All four looked at each other before giving their full attention to the intimidating Professor standing before them.

"Today's course will consist of seven different areas, each designed as a test for a particular subject. The subjects covered today will be Transfguration, Potions, Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Creatures and Flying," Draco and Harry grinned at the last one while Hermione and Neville grimaced slightly. "There is a set order in which you have to complete these 'obstacles' but you will only be told what is first, Transfiguration. Each Obstacle Course is designed differently, so do not think that they will all be in the same order as this one.

"This particular course is a simple 'complete this task and you will be given another one' course. If at any time you find the course overly difficult, you may give up and your time will be recorded up until that point. You may still win the round as some may not get as far as you in such a short amount of time."

All four were listening intently as McGonagall spoke to them. "Now, to your first task that you must overcome. I will escort you to the grounds and you will choose a tree. You must then get a leaf and successfully turn it into a rock. Each of you must complete this to move on. When completed, I will tell you where to go and who to meet there. Understood?" McGonagall received three excited nods of understanding. "Good. Well then, let's get moving."

McGonagall lead them to a tree in the middle of the Hogwarts Grounds and said, "Start!"

Much to Harry's surprise, he saw a sudden flash of red on his hand. When he looked, he saw that a timer had begun, and was stating that less than five seconds had passed. Harry didn't have much time to pay attention to this as he went straight for a bright green coloured leaf on the ground, pointed his wand at it and said, " _Mutatio Petra_ ," and in no time the bright green leaf had transformed itself into what almost seemed to be an emerald but was, in fact, a rock with the colour of the leaf. Harry showed McGonagall quickly and she took it and nodded. Harry quickly took a look at the time and saw that it had been less than forty-five seconds. Harry knew this was a team effort so he went to where Draco and Neville were working on their leaf. Hermione, not shocking Harry at all, had completed this well before he did.

Draco was doing something wrong with his wrist movement, which was tracing a semi-circle. Harry quickly showed him how to do it and it worked. Neville on the other hand was a much more difficult student. As Draco went to McGonagall to give her his transfigured rock, Harry walked over to where Hermione was helping Neville. Harry heard Neville mispronouncing the words and saw his wrist movement was off. Hermione was focusing on the words and, when Neville got the words right, Harry began to work on the wrist movement as he had done to help Draco.

"Just move your wand like this Neville," Harry said demonstrating the semi-circle wrist movement. Neville tried, saying the incantation as he went, but his leaf stayed the same. Harry noticed something subtle about Neville's wrist movement and grasped the struggling boys hand and did the movement with him to show him what to do. Harry did this three times before allowing Neville to try on his own with the actual spell. This time it worked and Neville let out a relieved sigh as he moved to Professor McGonagall with a smile on his face.

"Okay, then. That's all four done. You must now move on over towards Hagrid's hut where you will meet Professor Sprout who will inform you what your next task is." McGonagall, seeing the proud look on Neville's face allowed a small smile and motioned them away.

As they ran towards Hagrid's hut Harry checked the time. Two and a half minutes had passed since they started the course. _Not bad_ , he thought to himself, inwardly smiling. They could see Hagrid's hut in the distance but standing in their way was what seemed to be something akin to a corn field, and standing in front of this was the dumpy little witch Professor Sprout, the Herbology teacher.

"My, that was quick," Sprout exclaimed as they neared where she was standing. "Well, I won't hold you up any longer than I need to but I will tell you all that you must get through this field of plants, which I cannot tell you the name of, in order to move on to Hagrid's hut. Now go!"

Neville let out a gasp as if something had just dawned on him.

"I think I know what this plant is. I read about it in the textbook before school. _Angius Gramen_." Neville's eyes were wide as he looked at the tall, moving plants which seemed to be all manner of bright colours. He looked around himself and found what he hoped he would. Picking up the fallen tree branch he looked at the other stunned member of his group. Harry was amazed at Neville. Herbology really was his calling. "I can use this stick to test whether it is what I think it is."

"Well, hurry it up then Neville. We're against the clock here," Draco said impatiently and Neville just nodded, not offended in the slightest at the blunt comment. The next moment Neville through the stick towards the plant, making sure that it was close enough to them that they could see what was going on. Harry let out an audible gasp as the plant attacked the stick, almost as if the plant was a snake. The stick snapped into pieces with a loud crack. Draco stared and Hermione had gone pale. Harry just gaped while Neville looked thoughtful. It wasn't long before Neville had picked up a larger stick and looked towards Hermione.

"Hermione, you know the spell for lighting objects on fire, right?" Hermione nodded still looking pale. "Use it on this stick, on the end so we can use it like a torch," Neville said purposefully. Harry caught a glance at Professor Sprout who seemed unable to contain her pride that Neville knew what to do.

Hermione stared for a second and then pointed her wand at the end of the stick and said, " _Lacarnum Inflamarae_ " and a small burst of flame came from the end of her wand and lit the end of the stick and Neville quickly took it and walked towards the plants.

"Stay close to me. I'm pretty sure that fire is the only thing that scares these plants into not attacking. Since I can't see any more sticks and I really don't want you to get poisoned you will have to stick close to me," Neville said with a hint of pride in his voice. Hermione ran over to Neville and grabbed his arm. Neville blushed and Harry and Draco chuckled and moved towards him.

Harry had no idea whether Neville was right or not but he did trust the short boy considering this was to do with his best subject. The smile from Sprout helped as well. But still, there was a part of him that worried that it wasn't right. In his mind's eye, he saw Hermione being bitten by the Angius Gramen while Neville and Draco were being strangled. The images he had conjured in his mind scared him and he really had no idea what brought them on, but he did know that he definitely did not like them. He looked at the boy wielding the tree branch which was now aflame. Neville looked calm, as if he had done this his whole life. Neville's calm helped Harry to feel at least slightly calmer.

As they approached the snake-like Angius Gramen Harry felt his heart begin to race. Harry looked to Neville who still had a slightly shaking Hermione hanging off his arm but he was looking straight ahead. Just before they reached the Angius Gramen, Harry unconsciously began holding his breath. When they finally reached the edge of the area covered by the plant Harry heard a strange screech coming from the direction of the plants and then Harry watched as the snaky plants shrunk away from the heat radiating from Neville's fire covered stick.

Harry let out the breath he was holding and heard Hermione do the same. He also heard Draco mutter, "Thank Merlin." Neville then spoke up in a more confident voice than Harry had heard come from his shy young friend.

"We need to keep moving," he said, walking forward. "We don't know how much area the plant covers and the fire probably won't last long. We need to move."

All three nodded quickly and began to move as a group so as to not get caught by the plants springing back to life behind them. Harry really wasn't paying attention to how long they were in there, he just wanted to get out. When they finally reached the other side, Neville dropped the stick and Hermione quickly put out the fire. While he was doing that, Harry checked the time which now read eight and a half minutes. Luckily Hagrid's hut was so close they didn't have to run.

When they entered the hut, they heard a strange high pitched laugh coming from a corner of the hut. Hagrid was nowhere to be seen so they went to investigate the noise. When they reached the source of the laugh they saw a small blue, winged creature playing with a rag that Hagrid had apparently left somewhere. When it saw the four of them it dropped the rag and started attacking larger objects. Draco let out a snort.

"Cornish Pixie. Not a big deal. Looks like this is the creature task. Maybe we have to catch it?" Draco asked no one in particular and no one in particular was surprised to hear Hermione answer.

"Seems that way, doesn't it?" she said. "But how exactly do we do that? It is pretty fast so we can't use our hands. Are these creatures common in the magical world?"

"Not in particular," Neville answered in a small frightened voice. Harry wondered what made Neville scared of a pixie but not a snake-plant. "But I have seen Gran deal with one before. But I can't remember the spell. I know it stopped it from moving ..." Neville trailed off and Draco took that as his cue.

"I know how. I've seen father exterminate them from the Manor before. Not too hard," he said, drawing his wand and pointing it towards the blue Cornish Pixie which was now resting on the kitchen bench. " _Immobulus_!"

There was a small blue light and then the laughter ceased. Harry looked over to see the blue pixie had been caught mid-flight and was floating slowly away. It looked stricken as if it knew what was going to happen when Draco pointed his wand at it. Harry let out a little laugh and went forward and grabbed the small, insect-like Cornish Pixie out of the air. "So, where do we find Hagrid?"

As if on cue the big man burst through the front door of the hut and was soon standing in front of Harry.

"Alrigh' there Harry? Neville? Hermione? Draco?" Draco's name was said with less vigour than the others but was friendly nonetheless.

"Not meaning to be rude Hagrid, but we're in a bit of a rush," Harry rushed, handing over the frozen pixie. "We _really_ need to know where to go next. We'll come and see you when everything is done for the day."

Hagrid nodded, beaming under his large overgrown beard.

"O' course. Yer need to go to the Quidditch Pitch. Madam Hooch'll be there to greet yeh. Off with yeh now!" Hagrid said cheerfully looking at the four young faces who instantly bolted out of the front door. Hermione and Neville were far less fit than the other two so they all decided that Draco and Harry would move forward to the Quidditch Pitch and Neville and Hermione would catch up at their own pace.

Harry bolted towards the massive Quidditch Pitch with Draco alongside him. Harry wondered what they would have to do there. _Obviously flying, but what sort? I hope it isn't a group thing. Neville still isn't confident enough on a broom and Hermione still can't stand it_ , Harry thought worriedly. But his thoughts could not be continued as he and Draco reached the Pitch and soon made their way to the middle where Madam Hooch was standing. There were four brooms laid out in front of her and Harry's heart fell.

"Where is the rest of your group?" Madam Hooch asked sternly.

"Catching up with us," said a near breathless Harry. "Not as ... fit."

Madam Hooch snorted with some derision at the heavy-breathing boys and began to tell them what was expected of them.

"You will not all need to participate in this, good thing too, the way Longbottom and Granger fly," she said, slightly annoyed. "Anyway, you need to each take a broom if you are going to fly and get in the air. I will then release a Golden Snitch which you will have to catch in order move on. If you fail to catch it within thirty minutes I am afraid I will have to fail you. Now grab your brooms if you would!"

Harry and Draco both stood over a broom and shouted, "UP!" and the brooms both obliged and shot up into each boy's hand. They soon were off the ground waiting for the Snitch to be released. Harry thought being in the air was amazing. He loved the feeling of the wind in his hair and the sun on his face. He also loved the thrill involved with flying. It was almost as if he had flown his whole life.

Despite all of this, he felt that he would be relying a lot on Draco to capture the Snitch, as Harry had never had a chance to catch a Snitch or, in fact, play Quidditch at all. Draco had told Harry that his father had his own private Quidditch Pitch which Draco often played on for practice. Draco said, while he was good at all positions, he preferred Chaser. He was best at Chaser because he found it easy to manipulate the Keeper into thinking he was going to do something that he wasn't going to do.

Harry noticed a tinge of nervousness cross Draco's face as Madam Hooch released the golden ball. When it was released Harry and Draco met in the middle of the pitch.

"You cover the far end of the pitch," Draco said pointing behind Harry. "I'll take this end. If you see the Snitch, catch it." Harry nodded.

"Can do, Draco," he said and Draco promptly took off. Harry stayed still for a moment but was soon on the move. Harry found his eyes scanning his entire area and looking for even a hint of gold. While he was looking around he noticed Neville and Hermione show up. Hermione was white-faced until she talked with Madam Hooch, then she got colour back. Madam Hooch had obviously explained that she didn't have to fly in this part of the Obstacle Course. Not shockingly, Neville chose not to fly either.

Harry caught a quick glance of Draco who was searching around the far end of the Pitch diligently and Harry felt like he was not trying hard enough so he looked around even harder. This seemed to pay off as, about a minute after refocusing his efforts, Harry saw a flicker of gold near the grass beneath him. Without even thinking, Harry shot downwards towards the Snitch. By the time Harry realised that he was hurtling towards solid ground at a speed which could kill him, he couldn't stop himself.

As if by instinct alone, Harry pulled upwards on the old school broom. At first, the broom seemed almost reluctant to do what he wanted, but it eventually gave in and he levelled it out just moments before he would have crashed into the grass below and chased down the flying golden ball with an outstretched right hand.

It seemed as if the Snitch was constantly out of his grasp but he found himself edging closer and closer. As soon as his fingers wrapped around the cold gold of the Snitch Harry felt a sense of pride like he had never felt before and soon found himself staring at the Snitch. Quickly snapping himself out of his reverie, Harry made his way to the ground and dismounted his broom. It was only then that he noticed two things. The first was that he had a grin plastered on his face that felt as if it would never leave. The second was that his heart was absolutely pounding in his chest. Harry attributed this to almost killing himself.

Before long Hermione found her way towards him very quickly.

"Harry!" she said angrily, hitting him on the arm. "You scared me half to death with that!" Harry was still smiling broadly and after a moment Hermione reluctantly smiled as well.

After he shook hands with Draco, who only looked mildly annoyed that he had not caught the Snitch first, Madam Hooch made her way over to him, a look of awe on her face. Harry gladly handed her the snitch and she told them to go to the entrance courtyard for their next obstacle. While they were leaving, Harry heard her say, "I will definitely have to have a talk with Oliver about that one. Amazing."

When they neared the courtyard, Harry checked the time which now said they had been going for nearly seventeen minutes. Harry wondered whether that was good or not. When they reached the courtyard, Harry noticed a large cauldron in the middle and next to it stood someone who most definitely was not Professor Snape.

The man stood next to the cauldron had prominent, pale gooseberry coloured eyes, and an enormous, silver, moustache that Harry thought was similar to that of a walrus. He was short and round, with silvery balding hair. Harry had never seen the man before but he assumed he had something to do with Potions as this was the Potions part of the Obstacle Course. Harry did not have to wait long to find out who the man was.

"Well, hello there, students," he said, his eyes flickering straight to Harry. He looked Harry right in the eyes and Harry saw a tinge of sadness flicker in the man's eyes before they flickered upwards, towards Harry's scar. "My name is Horace Slughorn, formerly the Potions Master of Hogwarts. As Professor Snape had some, shall we say, reservations about participating in these courses I will be supervising all of the Potions aspects of the Obstacle Courses, at least for the younger students, this year. You may call me Professor, if you so wish.

"Your task for today is to observe the cauldron in front of you as well as the ingredients scattered around it. All the ingredients needed for this particular potion are there. What you must do is identify the potion correctly and add the final ingredient. Once you have done that you can move on," Harry noticed that during the whole speech Professor Slughorn had not taken his eyes off of him. He did not have much time to think much about this as Slughorn said, "Well get a move on then."

Hermione and Draco made their way quickly to the cauldron but Harry and Neville were not as interested. The others were far and away the best at Potions in the group. Harry and Neville still tried to help but Draco and Hermione ended up doing all of the work simply because they were better at it. Harry and Neville had no problems with this in the slightest.

"Hermione, you are better at the theory and I'm better at making them so I think you should try to analyse it first," Draco said while examining the already made potion. Hermione nodded and looked at the ingredients on the ground intently. She and Draco were silent and Harry took in the ingredients. A vial of bat blood, horse hair, a rat tail, goosegrass, cinnamon, moondew, porcupine quills, beetle eyes, sophophorous beans and silverweed.

Harry was struggling to piece this together at all. He looked from Draco to Hermione who both looked deep in thought. Neville was simply staring at the cauldron as if it was frightening to him. He looked genuinely scared of it. Harry looked at Neville and smiled encouragingly but didn't trust himself to interrupt either Draco or Hermione.

A few minutes of thought later, Hermione gasped.

"Breathing Potion," she said, looking to Draco.

"It is," Draco said, clearly wishing he had thought of it. Draco grabbed the final ingredient which was, if Harry was correct, cinnamon. Hermione nodded, but looked apprehensive.

"Are you certain this is the right one?" she asked.

"Not definitely, no, but it is what I remember," Draco replied. "You and I both think it's the right one, so I'd say it's more likely right than wrong, wouldn't you say?"

"I suppose," Hermione replied.

"We don't have much to lose anyway," Draco said, putting the cinnamon into the potion calmly, while Hermione breathed in sharply. There was a low hiss that came from the cauldron and a sudden loud clap from behind them.

"Correct!" Shouted Professor Slughorn happily. "Absolutely correct! Well done Miss Granger and Mr Malfoy. Now, on to your next obstacle. You don't have far to travel for this one. Just go down that way," Slughorn pointed to a trail to Harry's right which led down to an area Harry had not been at Hogwarts. "Professor Flitwick should be there. Congratulations! Move on now!"

The four First Years nodded and promptly took a right and went out of sight. Twenty-two minutes had now passed and Harry felt they were going well. It didn't take long to find Professor Flitwick standing next to a large boulder. The boulder was, at the very least, three times as tall as Professor Flitwick and about six times as wide. He was smiling broadly at the four Gryffindors as they got close to the small Charms Professor.

"Good show getting this far," Flitwick squeaked when the group was close enough for him to be heard. "I won't keep you for too long. All you have to do is levitate this boulder. Underneath the boulder, you will find a piece of parchment telling you where to go for your final test." With that he left and hurried to a spot further away.

Harry decided to attempt it first as he was able to levitate heavier things than the others in practice.

" _Wingardium Leviosa_ ," he muttered as he did the swish-and-flick motion. The boulder lifted slightly off the ground but not enough for anyone to get the parchment. Harry stopped the spell and looked at Hermione. "What do we do now?"

Hermione started pacing, obviously beginning to think. In the meantime, Draco decided he would try to levitate the boulder but he had less success than Harry did. Neville did the same but was unable to lift it at all, but not for lack of trying. Just before Harry tried something he remembered something that he read in his Charms textbook.

"Hermione. Can't you combine the power of some charms to make them stronger?" Harry asked quickly with a smile. Hermione's face lit up.

"That's right, Harry!" she said, smiling. "We haven't done it in class yet but you can do that with some charms. _Wingardium Leviosa_ is one of those charms. I think it is, at least." She looked thoughtful again. "We will need one person to grab the parchment, which leaves only three of us levitating the boulder. Neville?" She turned to face the unhappy looking boy.

"Mmm?" Neville replied, obviously still feeling bad that he couldn't even lift the boulder.

"Do you think, if Harry, Draco and I lifted the boulder, you could slip under and grab the parchment?" Hermione asked in her nicest tone and even added a look which made Harry have to stifle a laugh.

"I guess so Hermione. Can you hold it for long enough though? Don't wanna get squashed," Neville said nervously.

"I don't know to be honest," Hermione replied. "We can only try."

Neville visibly gulped but nodded. Harry, Hermione and Draco lined up, pointing their wands at the boulder in front of them. They all seemed to take a breath at once before shouting, " _Wingardium Leviosa_!" to which the boulder floated upward about six feet, easily allowing Neville to pass under.

The fact that the sharing of the spell worked was not the only amazing thing that happened as Neville cautiously navigated his way underneath the boulder. Harry could feel something within himself that felt entirely foreign to him. It was a rush of emotions. Not only could he feel what he felt when the boulder lifted, but he also could feel relief, happiness, focus and concern within himself, and not one of them felt like they had emanated from himself. While ensuring that his mind was still focused on keeping the boulder afloat, he looked to Hermione and Draco, both of whom wore expressions of surprise much like his own and then Harry could feel it as well. It was as though a wave of something passed through him. Yet, the spell did not so much as waver as Neville retrieved the parchment underneath.

A few moments after Neville moved out from underneath it, Harry, Hermione and Draco stopped the spell, causing the boulder to land with a massive thud. The moment the boulder hit the ground, the emotions other than his own that Harry had felt seemed to disappear, leaving Harry feeling somewhat lost for a moment. He looked at Hermione and Draco and saw similar expressions on their faces. Neville, however, just seemed confused.

"Hey guys, you alright?" he asked with some concern and relief in his voice. "You look a bit off."

Harry and the other two shook their heads and muttered that they were fine and looked at Neville expectantly.

"Oh! That's right," Neville said embarrassed. "We have to go back to where we started where we will find Professor Quirrell. That's the last one."

With that they took off in the direction that was where they had transfigured leaves into rocks. Harry noticed that they had been going for twenty-seven minutes now and they were doing quite well. When they reached the tree, they found Professor Quirrell looking off into the distance with an uninterested look on his face as if he was not really there. It was eerie. Harry was the one who had to talk to him.

"Uh ... Professor Quirrell?" Harry asked hoping that would be enough.

"Wha ... Oh. Right," Professor Quirrell stammered as his eyes came into focus. "You got this far, did you? Interesting. For my task, one of you will need to defend yourselves against my disarming charm. Only one of you needs to actually do it, but you may each try if you so wish."

"Um ... Okay Professor," Harry replied before looking towards his friends. "You want a chance first or should I just go?"

Draco, Hermione and Neville all voiced their opinions that Harry should just get it over with because he was far and above the best at shield charms out of the four of them and if he couldn't do it then none of them could. Harry could see no fault in their logic and swiftly silenced them with a wave of his hand. "Okay. I'll do it." The others nodded smiling slightly. Harry turned to face the Defence Professor. "Okay Professor, take your best shot."

Professor Quirrell nodded and readied himself and counted down.

"Three ... two ... one! _Expelliarmus_!" he shouted.

At the same time Harry shouted, " _Protego_!" as the red blast hurtled towards him. Harry watched as the red ball of energy bounced off of his shield and headed directly back towards Quirrell who did a silent and very different shield charm himself which absorbed the spell. Quirrell looked surprised but said, "End Time!"

Harry watched as the timer on the back of his hand stopped on twenty-eight minutes and fifty-three seconds. Harry felt very proud at that but wondered if it was truly enough to beat the other groups. He was certain they had beaten Nott and Zabini at least, which made him feel incredibly happy but the other groups were far more adept than Zabini and Nott's group. He decided that there was no point in wondering about what the other groups were doing, and decided to simply celebrate with his friends.

They were all dismissed and told they could go anywhere they wanted within Hogwarts as long as they stayed away from the Grounds and the Great Hall. They went back to Gryffindor Tower and spent the afternoon there doing homework, lazing around and generally enjoying each other's company.

The next morning at breakfast the results were announced. They went through all of the older years first, something that Harry really detested, as was feeling anxious to discover how his group had performed. Harry looked around the Gryffindor table at his three teammates who all looked as anxious as Harry felt. Hermione was paler than usual, Draco was wringing his hands and Neville looked positively sick. They were all relieved when Dumbledore finally came to the first-years.

"And last, but not least, the First Years! They did their Obstacle Course on the Hogwarts Grounds yesterday and I must say, they did a spectacular job for a group who have not been at Hogwarts very long. There were five groups that competed yesterday, all of whom did extremely well. In fifth place," Harry's heart began to race, "was the group consisting of Megan Jones, Wayne Hopkins, Zacharias Smith and Helen Verity who made it to the fifth obstacle before succumbing to a tricky Potions test."

"In fourth place was the team consisting of Justin Finch-Fletchley, Leanne Moon, Padma Patil and Parvati Patil, who also made it to the fifth obstacle but eventually succumbed to the Potions task as well. They did, however, complete the other tasks before the fifth placed team." There was some light applause for this group while Harry began to feel inwardly relieved.

"In third place was the team consisting of Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode. They all made it to the sixth obstacle but stumbled on the Charms aspect of the course." There was snickering heard around the Great Hall except from the Slytherin table where Harry saw groans escape a lot of their lips.

"In second place," Harry's heart began, once again, to race, "was the team consisting of Terrence Boot, Mandy Brocklehurst, Lisa Turpin and Anthony Goldstein. They made it all the way to the end but could not complete the final obstacle, the Defence Against the Dark Arts obstacle. I must say, however, that many of the older years would have had trouble with that particular obstacle as well," Harry inwardly cheered. They did it. They actually won! Not only that but Dumbledore all but said that Harry was better than some of the older years. Harry was ecstatic. When he looked at his friends he smiled broadly. He saw Draco reach over and pat a stunned Neville on the shoulder. Hermione then hugged both Neville and Draco before turning to Harry and hugging him.

The hug seemed to go longer than the ones for the other two, and when Hermione let go of Harry, she seemed to blush a little, though Harry wasn't entirely sure why. He looked towards the podium near the Teachers' table and saw Dumbledore smiling at them, his blue eyes sparkling immensely.

"It seems as though our winners have already begun celebrating but I must carry on. In first place for the First Years was the team consisting of Neville Longbottom, Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. Congratulations!" He shouted amongst the roar of applause.

Harry, Draco, Hermione and Neville spent the rest of their breakfast, and a lot of the day, being congratulated by everyone, it seemed, except for the Slytherins and Ron Weasley.

Despite all of this, Harry's mind was still drawn back to the Charms portion of the Course. When he, Draco and Hermione finally discussed it, Harry came to the conclusion that it must have been a side effect of the spell sharing.

"It doesn't say that in the textbook," Hermione said insistently.

"It has to be that, though," Harry said, looking to Draco, who shrugged.

"Maybe we should tell someone," Hermione replied. Harry shook his head.

"I agree with Harry," Draco said.

"But the textbook –" Hermione began.

"Doesn't tell you everything," Draco cut in. "Look, if it happens again, we'll go to someone."

"Nothing has happened since," Harry said, trying to convince Hermione. "It'll be fine. I'm sure it's nothing."


	15. Letters

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER TWELVE —

 _Letters_

The week following the first Obstacle Course seemed to fly by in a flurry of congratulations, schoolwork and homework. The Halloween feast was perhaps the highlight of that week, however. The Great Hall was suitably decorated and Harry had been ecstatic to see so many different Halloween-themed meals and treats on the house tables. The roof of the Hall had been changed so that it looked like it was storming. The thunder and lightning seemed to scare everyone in the Great Hall at least once, and there was one moment where it even somehow started to rain, which was quickly stopped by Dumbledore, though the culprit was never found.

Harry was glad he had his friends to help him stay on track in school because otherwise he would easily have fallen behind had they not been there. Neville's lessons continued and, since the first Course, he was showing some great signs of his self-esteem growing, which Harry thought was doing him wonders.

As the days went by, the lessons became less about Neville and more about the whole group, with everyone reaping the benefits of learning from each other. Harry noticed himself improving at Potions, despite Professor Snape being as unpleasant as ever. Especially after Harry's team's recent victory. Although Harry _had_ managed to avoid a detention with him for a few weeks which was likely part of the reason for his success. He had no desire to clean jars by hand. Harry also noticed Draco and Hermione getting better at Defence Against the Dark Arts, which Harry had begun to 'teach' them. All in all, the lessons were some of the best spent time in their day.

Harry was grateful that they had a month to train for the next Obstacle Course. Despite the apparent ease with which they went through the course itself, Harry had never felt so nervous before. Watching Uncle Vernon lumber towards him, his face purple and enraged, was not nearly as nerve wracking as that was. Over the next week, Harry and Draco had a few run-ins with Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott but they both just played it safe and ignored them when they could. Detention was the last thing that either of them wanted, especially if it was going to be caused by those two, of all people.

Actual classes had started to become more difficult, particularly so with Transfiguration, as they were now focusing on how to fully reverse a Transfiguration, something which Professor McGonagall had done for them up until this point. Harry was having a lot of difficulty grasping this particular branch of Transfiguration. In fact, a lot of people were, including Hermione, which made Harry seriously wonder how anyone was supposed to do it if she couldn't. Harry was steadily becoming more and more frustrated each time he couldn't do the spell correctly, and was practicing it one day in their second-floor classroom while the others traded Disarming Spells and put up shield charms. Harry was trying to revert a rock back to a leaf, but he could not do it no matter how hard he tried.

" _Conuerte_ ," Harry said for what seemed like the thousandth time. Still no success. Harry growled a low, guttural sound that rattled his throat. Just when Harry was about ready to throw his wand at a wall, he noticed a brown owl fly through an open window nearby. "That's not Hedwig," Harry said aloud, looking at the letter attached to the owl's leg. The owl flew away and out of the window after Harry took the letter.

Harry knew it was definitely not from Dudley. The handwriting was too neat. Harry looked at the letter addressed to him with a perplexed look. He opened the letter and read the deep green writing.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _I know you don't know me well, or at all really, but I don't really know what to do. My name is Ginny Weasley, Ron's little sister. We met at King's Cross Station. I know you must be annoyed to receive a letter from a nobody like me but I thought you might be able to help._

 _You see, we haven't heard from Ron since he owled us to say that you and he had gotten into Gryffindor. I've sent him dozens of letters but he never sends any back. He won't even reply to Mum's letters. What a prat!_

 _Anyway, I was just wondering if you could talk to him and get him to send us a letter because we don't seem to be getting through to him at all._

Harry grimaced reading the letter. He had nothing against Ginny, or even the rest of Ron's family, but Harry couldn't bear to talk to him. The next paragraph looked like it was written quickly and with shaking hands, but Harry could still read it.

 _I was also wondering if you would owl me back. You see, I'm the last child in the house and I don't have anyone to talk to. Ron isn't writing. Fred and George are annoying. Percy seems to be too busy for me. Bill and Charlie don't even live in the country. There's Luna Lovegood, who lives near me, but she's a little strange and isn't always around. I know you don't know me but I really feel alone._

Harry felt a pang of sadness at the words written in front of him. This poor girl was so alone, even in her own family. Harry could really identify with that. He read on.

 _Anyway, even if you could just talk to Ron that would be great. Oh, and Mum sends her love._

 _From,_

 _Ginny Weasley_

Harry reread the letter before looking at his friends who were still practicing. He sighed and reached into his pouch to retrieve parchment, a quill and some ink. He thought about what he would say to this girl for a minute before writing the letter.

 _Dear Ginny,_

 _Let me start out by saying that you are not a 'nobody'. Don't be like that. And, so you know, I will always remember the day I met your family and you. It was pretty much the best day of my life._

 _Now, on the subject of Ron. I'm afraid that he and I haven't spoken in weeks. Not since the day that he made my Muggle-born friend, Hermione Granger, cry and called my other friend, Neville Longbottom, a Squib. That was also the day my friend Draco Malfoy punched him in the face and broke his nose. Just so you know, Draco was sticking up for Hermione at the time._

 _I hope you don't think badly about me, or Draco, because of this. I really tried with Ron but he wouldn't even try to be friends with Hermione and Draco. By the way, I assume you know the Malfoy family? Well, if you do let me state that Draco is not like them anymore. If it helps, he got Sorted into Gryffindor because he wanted to be friends with me and, eventually, Hermione as well. He has a long way to go but he's getting there._

 _I'm writing this letter directly after receiving it and I will talk to Ron when I can. I can't say that he'll listen but I will try._

 _I feel really bad for you, Ginny. I know what it is like to be alone. I grew up with Muggles who hated me because they knew what I was but wouldn't tell me. So I can understand your wanting someone to talk to. I hope you will continue to write to me because I will continue as long as you do._

 _I hope that you talk to your parents about Ron, Ginny. Let them know that he is alright as far as I can tell. If you want to, you can tell them about what happened but if you mention Draco, please reassure them that he is not like his father in the slightest._

 _Thank your Mum for me please. I hope to hear from you again._

 _Your friend,_

 _Harry Potter_

Harry put down his quill and rested his hand for a minute, reading over his work feeling pleased at the result. He had covered pretty much everything that he felt he had to and he felt better knowing that he was going to try and help Ginny.

Harry let the ink dry before folding it and placing the letter in an envelope, which he pulled out of his pouch. He placed the envelope back in the pouch after writing 'Ginny Weasley' on the front of it. He was going to head up to the owlery and find Hedwig when they finished up in the classroom. Before they finished up, Harry told his friends about the letter. Draco seemed grateful that Harry was trying to redeem him in the eyes of the Weasleys, while Hermione was gleeful that Harry would do such a thing for Ginny. Neville didn't really seem all that interested but Harry knew that he was thinking about what Ron had said to him weeks ago. He had never really gotten over that, and it didn't help that he had to spend so much time around Ron all the time.

Because they had nothing better to do, they all headed up to the owlery together to find Hedwig. Harry needed her to send one letter to Dudley that he had prepared the day prior and the one to Ginny. Hedwig hooted appreciatively before taking flight. Hedwig knew to drop Ginny's letter off and then go to Dudley and await an answer.

Harry received Dudley's letter first in which he explained everything that was going on in his life and he asked Harry a heap of questions about Hogwarts, lessons, Professors and magic in general. Harry was glad Dudley was still so interested.

Ginny's reply came two days after Dudley's and was rather long considering the letter she had sent before. Harry opened it while sitting on his four-poster bed alone in the dorm room. He was ready for bed much earlier than everyone else so that he could have some privacy to read the letter.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _I am so sorry about the way Ron acted. I knew he was a prat, but I never thought he would sink so low. Upsetting a Muggle-born! Dad was furious. Dad loves Muggles and everything about them, you see, and to hear of his own son doing such a thing really seemed to hurt him. He almost sent a howler but I talked him out of it. I could do no such thing to stop Mum, on the other hand. Watch out tomorrow morning. I heard her when she was composing the letter. It should be hilarious._

 _As for what you said about Draco Malfoy. Yes, I do know all about his parents and I trust you when you say he isn't like them at all. Dad says he will believe it when he sees it, but I think he's willing to trust you on this, for now at least. Dad and Lucius Malfoy have had their fair share of run-ins before so you can understand why Dad is reluctant to believe that his son has changed. Mum, on the other hand, has already started working on Draco's Christmas present. Because of course she has._

 _I don't blame you in the slightest for what happened with Ron. I'm just glad you don't mistrust the rest of us. What he said about Neville Longbottom was absolutely appalling! When I told Mum and Dad about this they got angrier than I have ever seen them. It almost seemed to be a personal insult. Don't be shocked to hear all about what Mum thinks about this tomorrow morning._

 _I'm so happy that you have agreed to keep writing to me. I do get lonely and I am so happy to find someone who totally understands what I am going through. I have never felt so alone in all my life and this has been the longest month and a half ever. I love my parents but they can really get annoying, and they try to do everything with me._

 _I saw Luna Lovegood earlier and told her that I had written to you and I saw something sparkle in her eyes that I had never seen before. Luna's eyes have always seemed distant, like she is not all there if you know what I mean, but when I mentioned I had written to you, something stirred. It was something, I'll tell you._

Ginny then went on to talk about her family a bit more before getting to the end of the letter.

 _I hope you don't mind, but I want to ask you a question. Were the Muggles really as bad as it seems that they were? I mean, Dad makes it out that all Muggles are brilliant but they can't all be, right? I mean, we have good and bad people, so I just assume Muggles do too._

 _Anyway, I better stop writing. At this rate I'll miss lunch. Thanks again for caring._

 _Your Friend,_

 _Ginny_

Harry smiled as he reread the letter. He had indeed done something good by talking to this girl. The letter seemed much happier than the first one. Harry folded the parchment and put it in his pouch while at the same time grabbing a quill and ink to write a letter back.

He spent about fifteen minutes writing the reply to Ginny, covering everything from Luna Lovegood to the Dursleys. Harry omitted the full details about his life with the Dursleys fearing that if they were included Ginny would have nightmares or something.

Just as he finished the letter the dorm room door opened and Ron walked in. Ron avoided Harry's gaze and slowly sat on his bed facing away from Harry. Harry had attempted to talk to Ron since receiving the first letter from Ginny, but Ron was becoming adept at avoiding him. He guessed that this was as good a time as any. He coughed loudly and deliberately to get Ron's attention. When this failed he just began talking.

"I got a letter from your sister, Ron." This got the red-head's attention as he turned around with an angry look on his face. "She's worried about you not writing to her or your Mum. I don't much care what you do, but I promised I would talk to you about it so I have," Harry said bluntly. Ron looked enraged.

"Who do you think you bloody well are?" he demanded angrily. "How dare you talk to my sister, and how dare you lecture me about writing to my own family! Stay out of it, Potter! This has nothing to do with you."

Deciding he was really too tired to argue with Ron, Harry simply shrugged and rolled over in bed. This only served to make Ron angrier.

"Oh! And let me guess? You told Ginny what I said? All of it?" When Harry didn't answer, Ron got even angrier, his face becoming red. "But of course, the Boy-Who-Lived is the best at giving lectures about how to treat parents, seeing as how his are dead!"

That was the last straw. Harry flew out of his bed, ignoring his wand entirely, and ran to where Ron was sitting. Harry slammed his fist into Ron's cheek as hard as he could and Ron fell to the floor, clutching where he had been hit and whimpering. Just then Neville and Draco entered the room.

"Hey, Harry," Neville began. "We heard yelling and ..." Neville trailed off as he saw the whimpering figure of Ron Weasley writhing in pain on the ground, hands clasped around his cheek.

"Harry. What happened?" Draco asked quietly, stifling a smile. Harry didn't bother to hide his smile.

"He … said some things. Mentioned my parents. You know how it is." Neville and Draco both nodded and walked over the body on the floor. Harry heard a whimper when Draco walked over him. Harry assumed Draco kicked him for good measure. Harry sat down on his bed followed by Draco and Neville. Harry grabbed out the letter he had written to Ginny.

 _P.S. I talked to your brother and he went off at me. He insulted me, told me not to talk to you and not to lecture him about how to treat his parents, which I didn't do. He then said that I wasn't qualified to do that as my parents are dead. He is now currently rolling around on the ground clutching his cheek. Take from that what you will._

Now satisfied with the letter Harry placed it in an envelope and left it in his pouch. It wasn't long before Harry, Draco and Neville were all in bed asleep. Seamus was trying desperately to finish his Potions homework and Ron was sitting up in his bed nursing a slowly bruising cheek angrily glaring at the three occupied beds. Before Harry fell asleep he heard him muttering words such as 'Malfoy', 'Potter' and 'Squib' angrily. Harry was too far gone to worry any longer about Ron.

The next morning, Harry awoke to find Ron snoring, Neville still asleep and Draco gone. Harry quickly got dressed, showered and went down to the common room where he soon realised how early it was. It was still half an hour before breakfast. When he reached the common room, he found Draco staring into a newly lit fire. He didn't even notice Harry enter the room. Harry decided to announce his presence with a fake yawn.

Draco jumped at the noise but continued to look at the fire. Harry heard a slight sniffle and he went to a vacant lounge chair and sat down facing Draco.

"Morning, mate. Sleep well?" Harry asked happily, knowing instantly he shouldn't have. Draco turned to face him, his eyes slightly red and a few streaks down his face.

"Nah. Not really," Draco said. "I slept until about an hour ago really restlessly and when I woke up I knew I wouldn't sleep anymore so I came down here." He sounded slightly hoarse and Harry could tell he had been crying, if only a bit. Harry had been like this before. He had always had nightmares before, some which made him look worse than Draco was at that point.

Harry looked at Draco, his eyes softening as he realised what had upset his friend.

"What was the dream about?" he asked.

Draco looked startled and his eyes went wild. He stammered his response, "How did ... what do you ... How?"

"I've looked worse than you do now," Harry said, shrugging. "You've heard my story. I still have nightmares some nights about that." Draco calmed down slightly and sighed.

"It was about my father. I was back home with him and he found out about ... well ... everything. You. Hermione. Gryffindor. He was not pleased at all. He yelled for a while before lashing out and hitting me," Harry flinched at that. "The strange thing is he has never really been one for physical punishment. But that wasn't all. When he finally finished ... beating me, he pointed his wand at me and green light came at me. It was then that I heard the high pitched, cruel laughter. That was all before I woke up. I was sweating heaps and I knew I wouldn't sleep again."

Harry's mind suddenly went into overdrive. The last part of Draco's dream was almost exactly like the last part of his own that he often experienced. Harry sat in silence, thinking for longer than he really should have because he heard Draco saying, "Harry? You there?"

"Uh ... yeah. Just thinking," Harry said truthfully. _It had to be a coincidence. No two people dream the same ... do they?_ Harry stopped thinking about it for now. "Are you okay now? You don't need to go and see Madam Pomfrey?"

Draco shook his head so the conversation moved on to happier things like Quidditch and the fact that Ron was going to receive a Howler at breakfast. When Draco heard this, he burst out laughing and had to calm down to explain Howlers to Harry. Harry learned that a Howler was sent by someone who wanted to yell at another from a long distance. They basically record what they want to say and 'place' the recording in a red envelope before sealing it and sending it. If a Howler is left unopened it explodes. Upon learning this, Harry burst out in laughter too.

Not long after, Hermione and Neville made their way down to the Common Room, two of the earliest among the large group of students. Harry informed his friends that he was hungry so they all made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast, only stopping at the owlery to send Hedwig with the letter he had written to Ginny. In truth, Harry wanted to get to breakfast early enough to hear Ron's howler.

Breakfast was almost finished when the sea of owls flocked into the Great Hall. Harry was not expecting mail himself so he set out watching for any owl that went near Ron, who was sitting with Fred and George as he had done the past few weeks. Harry had noticed Fred and George becoming rather hostile towards their little brother. _Must be a prat to them, too_ , Harry thought wryly.

It wasn't long before a big, brown blundering owl made its way to Ron and landed in a plate of toast in front of the red-head. The whole table seemed to laugh, as did the neighbouring Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables. Ron's ears went pink, followed soon by his face going white as a sheet as he noticed the red envelope. Harry and Draco exchanged amused glances and Harry saw Neville with a satisfied look on his face as well. Fred and George were cackling audibly along with the rest of the Hall. Ron simply took the Howler and opened it. The Hall fell silent as they awaited the message while Fred and George stood up and backed away along with a lot of people surrounding Ron. Even the teachers seemed interested. The letter unfolded quickly and spoke in the voice Harry knew was Mrs Weasley's.

"RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY! I HAVE SO MANY THINGS TO _SCREAM_ AT YOU ABOUT I DON'T KNOW WHERE TO START! HOW ABOUT YOU MAKING FUN OF THE POOR MUGGLE-BORN GIRL AND MAKING HER CRY? YOUR FATHER IS ABSOLUTELY ASHAMED!" Harry noticed Hermione blush slightly but she did have a smile as she saw Ron's horrified face. "AND HOW ABOUT POOR NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM? HOW DARE YOU CALL HIM WHAT YOU DID! WE THOUGHT WE BROUGHT YOU UP BETTER THAN THAT! THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR WHAT YOU SAID! WE ALSO TAUGHT YOU TO BE ACCEPTING OF OTHERS AND YOU DON'T SEEM TO HAVE TAKEN THAT TO HEART EITHER, WHAT WITH MAKING SOMEONE PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE!"

After that the Howler quietened and looked around. It's 'face', such as it was, fell on Harry and floated over. Harry was becoming worried before it spoke at a volume which only the people close by could hear. "Harry, dear. I am so very glad to hear you are doing well and have friends. UNLIKE SOMEONE!" It shouted again looking at Ron as the Hall laughed at his expense again before turning back to Harry, "I could tell you were worried. Oh, and thank you for writing to Ginny UNLIKE SOMEONE! She has been terribly lonely and you have been a big help," it turned once more to Ron. "IF I HEAR ONE MORE BAD WORD ABOUT YOU FROM _ANYONE_ I WILL COME DOWN THERE AND YELL AT YOU IN PERSON! AND _WORSE_!" The letter then ripped itself up in front of a quivering Ron.

Fred and George were still laughing. Harry, Neville and Draco couldn't help but laugh, which earned them a hit with a nearby book by Hermione, though she was grinning broadly as well. Harry looked at the teacher's table and saw that Snape was sneering slightly, as the right side of his lip was up. Quirrell was staring off into space, McGonagall's lips were in a straight line and Dumbledore's eyes had no trace of a twinkle, though he seemed to be looking at Gryffindor's table.

Harry felt a tap on his shoulder so he turned around smiling and he saw a fist fly at him, hitting him across the bridge of the nose. Harry felt the crack of both his glasses and his nose as he tumbled to the cold concrete floor. Draco, Neville and Hermione all stood and pointed their wands.

"Now we're even you bastard!" Ron yelled standing over Harry.

"MR WEASLEY!" Shouted Professor McGonagall who made her way swiftly to where Harry had been hit. Ron was already on his way out of the Hall and didn't turn back. McGonagall's lips pursed further as she pointed her wand and said, " _Accio Ronald Weasley_ ," and soon Ron was flying through the air towards the stern Professor. Somehow, McGonagall stopped Ron from fully reaching her. Ron stared impassively at McGonagall. "Fifty points from Gryffindor and a week's worth of detention Mr Weasley. If you complain I will double it. Now you may leave." Ron scowled and turned and left, his face quite purple.

Harry made his way to his feet, helped by Seamus Finnigan and Hermione. Hermione took his glasses and muttered, " _Oculus Reparo_ " and the glasses fixed themselves. Harry could taste blood in his mouth and realised he would need to go to the Hospital Wing.

"Mr Finnigan, could you please take Mr Potter to see Madam Pomfrey?" McGonagall asked quietly. Seamus and Harry quickly left and didn't speak the whole time. Seamus was reluctant in the past to take sides, but Harry thought that he might not like Ron very much either.

Harry wasn't sure what to feel after this. On one hand Ron had finally gotten what was coming to him and Harry was still accepted by Ginny and Mrs Weasley, but on the other hand, it seemed to only increase Ron's anger towards Harry. Just as he entered the Hospital Wing he sighed. _Ron is being a git. Plain and simple. I don't care what he does anymore_ , Harry thought. _It doesn't matter to me_.

His thoughts were interrupted by a fussy sounding Madam Pomfrey who, while working on Harry seemed to mutter under her breath about 'physical violence'. It didn't take long before Harry was cleaned up and his nose fixed. He was lucky it wasn't worse otherwise he would have had to stay overnight and he really didn't want to have to do that.

After one final check-over Madam Pomfrey released him and Harry headed to his Charms class which he was late for. Professor Flitwick didn't mind as the class was simply slight revision of what they had covered so far during the term. Harry, Hermione, Draco and even Neville completed what was needed of them very quickly and got to talking.

Hermione fussed over Harry for a time, but Harry told her he was fine and she reluctantly stopped. Harry liked the fact that there was someone who would fuss over him. Certainly, that had never happened before in his life, but it could become irritating after a time, he found. Before long they moved on to happier topics, while Ron had yet to levitate his book any higher than one foot in the air, needing to reach at least four feet. This provided quite a bit of amusement for not only Harry and his friends but also most of the Ravenclaw first years as they had also finished. Ron couldn't even do the simple levitation charm properly.

For the rest of the day Harry noticed that Ron's demeanour got worse as a result of all of the taunts and jeers directed his way. Even Zabini and Nott had joined in the fun with a pitch-perfect imitation of Mrs Weasley's letter which Harry, much to his own annoyance, actually found amusing. It seemed that Draco and Harry had been forgotten by them that day and Harry felt genuinely relieved. By the end of the day Harry was shocked to find that Ron had not once lost his temper again. Harry did wonder whether this was caused by the detention or his mother's threats. Either way it was amusing to see Ron's face turn red and, in some cases, purple at the taunts but not do anything about it.

At the end of the day, Harry went up to bed earlier than usual after Hermione had helped him, Draco and Neville with a Transfiguration essay. Harry had already pretty much finished it so he finished a lot quicker than the other two.

When he got up to his room he saw Hedwig waiting on her perch with a letter attached to her leg. Harry took the letter, gave Hedwig a treat and pet her for a while before opening and reading the letter.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _First of all, the last bit you added to your last letter had me in stitches so much that Mum asked to see what it was about. If I was laughing hard then I definitely was after she read your letter (I hope you don't mind). When she read the last bit, she went very red in the face and I could tell she was ready to blow up about it but then the oddest thing happened. She laughed along with me. It was the best thing ever. I don't ever remember Mum laughing with me before._

 _I should apologise for my brother's actions. What he has said and done to you is disgusting. I ask you again not to judge the rest of our family based on him. Not everyone in our family is like that. We were all raised better._

 _As for the rest of the letter, I must say, those Muggles didn't treat you very well did they? I know there are some things you aren't telling me but I know better than to press for details. Mum also told me not to as well. I have a feeling she is going to look for answers when she sees you next. And when she wants answers, it is generally best to give them. Mum has a way of finding them out whether you want her to or not._

Harry smiled reading this. He didn't really know why but that part of the letter felt ... right somehow. Like it was normal.

 _Anyway, I talked to Luna again today. I mentioned you again and I saw the same thing in her eyes. You really have to know Luna to understand how out of the ordinary this is for her. I think she might have a little crush on you._

Harry actually blushed reading the letter. He had never even met Luna before and he didn't like the idea that a girl liked him without knowing him. In fact, he wasn't sure he felt comfortable with a girl even having a crush on him. He felt slightly embarrassed at that thought.

 _The strangest thing, though, was that she asked a direct question. She NEVER does that. She always is very quiet and doesn't talk much and when she asks questions it is almost like she is trying not to ask at the same time. It's very weird._

 _Anyway, I'm rambling. She wanted me to ask you if you would write to her as well. Honestly, Harry, I think it would do Luna the world of good. I think she may be lonelier than me. She only has her father and he does a lot of work. At least I have Mum and Dad. Will you please give it some thought? I don't think I need to give you the address. Hedwig seems to be very smart. She'll find her way._

Once more Ginny talked a bit about her family and what she does on a normal day. Harry found this part of the letter comforting in a way. It was almost like having a family of his own. Harry smirked when he reached the bottom of the letter.

 _Oh! I forgot the biggest question! What did you think of the Howler? I watched Mum record it and I thought it was brilliant, particularly when it got quiet and talked to you. I never knew Mum was such a genius!_

 _I've been writing for far too long now so I had better stop. Thanks, Harry, for writing again. Please think about Luna._

 _Your friend,_

 _Ginny_

Harry wrote his reply to Ginny almost as soon as he finished reading hers. He wanted to get it sent that night so that he wouldn't forget about it. He found some parchment, a quill and ink in his pouch and began writing.

 _Dear Ginny,_

 _I want to clear something up with you before I truly begin writing. Please, stop apologising on Ron's behalf. I don't judge you or anyone else in your family simply because of one person. If you apologised for everything Ron did you wouldn't have any time to do anything else, would you? So, no more apologies, okay?_

 _Also, I would like to clear another thing up. Yes, the Dursleys were horrible, but just like I shouldn't with Ron, don't judge all Muggles based on them. They are the worst type of people in the world but not all Muggles are like the Dursleys._

 _By the way, I don't think you should let your mum read this next bit. Okay? Ron did receive the Howler today. It was very funny and Ron actually looked scared. But after it finished he lost it and hit me, breaking my nose and glasses. Don't worry though. Hermione fixed my glasses and Madam Pomfrey fixed me up very quickly. She's a miracle worker, that one. Ron lost fifty points and also got a week's worth of detention with Professor McGonagall. So, it ended alright._

 _I've decided that I will owl Luna tomorrow. I know you'll receive this tonight but I don't want to disrupt anything at the Lovegood's house so I'll wait until tomorrow. I hope Luna gets as much out of me owling her as much as you do._

Harry then went on to detail some more about Hogwarts and responded to Ginny's talk about her family. When he finished, he got out another sheet of parchment and began a second letter, this time to Luna Lovegood.

 _Dear Luna,_

 _My name is Harry Potter. Somehow, I think you already know about me so I will not explain._

 _In her last letter to me, Ginny told me what you asked her. I think writing to you is a great idea. Ginny also told me how lonely you must be. I can tell you right now, I know how you feel._

Harry then went on to explain the Dursleys and what he had to put up with. The edited version of course. As with Ginny, he did not want Luna to have nightmares. It was bad enough that Harry had them himself.

 _So, you can see why I know how lonely you must feel. I want you to feel free to send me a letter any time you like. I like receiving letters from friends because I never have before._

 _Your friend,_

 _Harry Potter_

With that Harry tied Ginny's letter to Hedwig's leg. "Okay girl, you have to take this to Ginny but make sure she is alone when she gets it okay?" Harry could have sworn he saw Hedwig nod at this.

When Hedwig left, Harry thought about what had transpired since he had learnt he was a wizard. His life was so different to before. Then he worked out why. He was happy. For the first time that he could remember he was truly happy. With that feeling, Harry drifted off to sleep.


	16. The Most Dangerous Student

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER THIRTEEN —

 _The Most Dangerous Student_

Harry awoke with a sense of unease the next Monday morning. His dreams, while not entirely pleasant, had been better than usual and yet, somehow, it felt like something was wrong. He picked his glasses up off his bedside table and looked around the room. Draco was stirring but everyone else was sound asleep. _Maybe I'm imagining things_ , Harry thought sleepily. It didn't really matter because it was early enough that he would not get back to sleep, so he got out of bed and headed downstairs to sit in front of a fire before having to get ready for the day.

Harry made it about halfway down the stairs before hearing someone crying. The sound was coming from the common room so Harry decided to see who it was. When he made it to the end of the stairs the sobbing intensified and Harry quickened his pace. He finally found Hermione sitting in a lounge chair in front of the fire, crying. Harry quickly realised this was the same way he had found Draco the week prior.

Harry walked over to his friend and sat down in the chair opposite her. She jumped at the sight of him.

"Oh ... Harry. It's just you," Hermione said quietly between sobs, trying desperately to wipe away the tears.

"So ..." Harry began quietly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Hermione replied quickly.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked.

"No," Hermione replied sadly before another tear fell down her face.

Harry sighed sadly.

"What was the dream about?"

Hermione looked at Harry wide-eyed but quickly recovered.

"I ... don't really want to talk about it," she said.

"Hermione," Harry said gravely. "I've had terrible dreams before. I might be able to help you."

Hermione looked at him for a minute and nodded slowly.

"Okay. But don't tell anyone. Okay?" When Harry nodded, Hermione continued. "It was about my father." At this Harry's heart almost stopped. "I was back home with him and he found out about my friends here at Hogwarts. Draco. Neville. You. He was not pleased at all. He said I should have girls as friends and not boys. He yelled at me for a long time and it frightened me." Her voice wavered and she burst into tears.

Harry moved over to her chair and sat next to her, allowing her to cry into his shoulder. All the while, his stomach was sinking. _What does this mean? Why is this happening? he thought angrily_. When Hermione got herself under control she looked up at Harry.

"That's not all," she said quietly. "When he finished yelling he pulled out a wand and pointed it at me and some green spell came hurtling towards me. When it hit me, everything went dark and all I could hear was this laughter. It was so creepy and high-pitched. I was so scared that I woke up drenched in sweat and ran down here. I was here for about two minutes before you got here."

Harry was feeling quite uneasy. He was not sure what was going on but he could tell that this was not good. Draco and Hermione had now both had dreams that were so similar to one of Harry's that it could not be a coincidence. He decided what they had to do. Harry looked down at Hermione, who was still clinging to her friend as if her life was on the line.

"Hermione, I think we need to see Dumbledore about this," he said. "Draco had almost exactly the same dream as yours, just with his own father, last week and it seems that you are both combining my worst dreams. I really think Dumbledore might be able to help." Hermione nodded silently looking pale as a ghost and still clinging to Harry. "Okay, good. You need to go up, have a shower and I'll get Draco up and then we can all leave to see Dumbledore."

At that Hermione stood up, hugged Harry, whispering "thank you" in his ear before leaving. Harry got up very soon after and made Draco get out of bed. When Harry explained what was going on, Draco agreed that it was the best course of action and was soon ready to go. Hermione was waiting for them at the portrait still looking horribly pale. To Harry's surprise, Draco walked over to her and hugged her. Hermione was obviously surprised as well, as she looked at Harry with a shocked look on her face.

It wasn't long before they were headed for the Headmaster's Office, Harry feeling odd. It was as though he felt responsible for what his friends had been through with the dreams. He knew, at least in his mind, that he was not to blame but all the facts pointed to his being involved as they were variants on his own dreams.

When they reached the gargoyles that indicated the Headmaster's office, Harry stopped. "Uh ... what's the password again?"

Hermione simply rolled her eyes.

"Mars Bar," Hermione said and the gargoyles parted allowing the trio to ascend the stairs to Dumbledore's office. When they reached the top, they heard a voice.

"Come in," Dumbledore was alone in his office, sitting behind his desk, literally twiddling his thumbs "Ah. Mr Potter. Miss Granger. Mr Malfoy. What can I do for you this fine day?" There was a fierce twinkle in Dumbledore's blue eyes while he said this which kind of unnerved Harry.

"Well, sir ..." Harry began before stopping to think. When he had worked out what he should say he continued. "This may seem strange, sir, but we're here because of some dreams we have been having."

"All of you?" Dumbledore asked seemingly unfazed.

"Yes sir," Harry confirmed. "But it hasn't always been all of us. You see, I have had this recurring dream which has only really made sense since coming to Hogwarts. I believe it is of the night you left me at the Dursleys. There was a flying motorcycle in it, ridden, I think, by Hagrid. But always, at the end of this dream, there has been a flash of green light and a high-pitched cackle."

Dumbledore's eyes seemed to lose all of the twinkle and he turned slightly pale.

"Harry ... are you certain?" When Harry simply nodded Dumbledore slumped back into his chair.

"But, sir, that's not all," Harry continued. Dumbledore sat up straight again. "Recently, as in the last week, Hermione and Draco have both had dreams of their fathers extremely angry with them, and it ended with a flash of green light and a cackle. The same as mine."

Harry looked over at Hermione who appeared to be trying very hard to hold herself together. Dumbledore looked lost. Harry really wished he could know what was going on in his friends' heads at that moment. No one spoke for some moments so Harry decided to voice his thoughts.

"Professor, if you don't mind I have a thought," he said uncertainly. "I often have dreams of my uncle which are … well … similar to what Draco and Hermione dreamed their fathers doing. But those dreams never end that way for me. It seems as if they are two of my worst dreams combined," Harry paused taking in the looks on the others' faces. "Is there any magical way of sharing dreams I might have accidentally done?"

As he spoke, Harry could almost feel the guilt oozing from his words. Dumbledore appeared to notice this, as he spoke rather quickly.

"No, Harry. At least, it is not something that you could do on your own," Dumbledore stopped to think. "I remember reading, many many years ago, a book which mentioned such a thing in it but there are several issues. This … let us call it a ritual, though in truth it is not the most accurate of descriptions, was used as a way to bind people together for a certain amount of time. Over time, this ritual has become disused, primarily because of its rarity and the effects. You see, the people involved become linked in a way. They become close. Similar to a family, though at times it is closer even than that. There are, I believe, three steps involved when this ritual occurs. You appear to be at step one, which is dream sharing.

"The literature on this topic is remarkably sparse, as it has not been used for a very long time now, so I cannot say that I know what the final two steps entail," Dumbledore continued, his hands entwined beneath his chin. "What I do know is that both steps will have the participants sharing something. So, in the first step, participants shared dreams. In the next step, something else will be shared. And then the same thing happens during the third step. While I do not know what happens during these steps, I read that they will eventually run their course and disappear once all three steps have been completed."

"What causes this ritual, sir?" Hermione asked, curious.

"It happens when the participants share a spell together," Dumbledore replied.

Harry's eyes widened in sudden realisation.

"The First Obstacle Course!" he exclaimed. "Draco, Hermione and I had to join spells in order to levitate a boulder that was too heavy for us. When we did it I felt … some different emotions. Not my own, I mean. At least, that's what I think it was. I also felt something surging through me that I thought at the time was just the magic from the combined spell." Hermione's eyes widened as well.

"I felt that too! I didn't know what it was," she admitted, a sense of excitement in her voice.

Draco looked pensive for a minute then his face looked as though he had finally worked it out.

"I felt it too," he confirmed. "It felt odd. I wasn't used to the emotions I felt." Harry looked at his best friend sadly.

"It appears that this was, indeed, the cause," Dumbledore said, nodding.

"But wouldn't anyone else who shared a spell be affected?" Hermione asked. "The other teams who made it that far would have to have done it." Dumbledore shook his head.

"This ritual is very selective," he replied. "There are … prerequisites of a sort that are required for it to take effect."

"Sir, I apologise in advance for my rudeness," Hermione said slowly, "but it seems as though you are not telling us something about this." Dumbledore bowed his head at that statement.

"I must admit, Miss Granger, that you have the truth of it," he responded. "There _is_ something that I am not telling you, though I hope you can take my word for it when I say that it is for a very good reason. Some of the information is best kept secret for the moment. In fact, I am woefully undereducated on this particular topic, something which I very much hope to rectify as soon as I can. Suffice it to say that this conversation has enlightened me somewhat about certain aspects of this ritual which I had not quite grasped, though there are many unanswered questions. Until I can answer them with any kind of confidence, I fear that I cannot tell you what I already know." He paused for a moment, as if to think, before continuing.

"There are some aspects which I believe are safe for me to tell you about," he said thoughtfully. "Firstly, if I am correct, and on this I do believe that I am, you three are not the only people involved in this ritual. There are, or perhaps more accurately will be, several others involved. While I do have my theories as to the others involved, I cannot tell you as to do so would place an undue amount of stress on your shoulders. Secondly, this whole ritual is tied directly to you, Harry."

Somehow, Harry wasn't surprised in the slightest.

"How?" Harry asked, the guilt coming back to him once more.

"You are the unwilling catalyst in this situation, I'm afraid," Dumbledore replied. "If Draco and Hermione had been the only two to share the spell, the ritual would not have activated. This is, of course, in no way your fault. This was decided without you being involved and for reasons beyond my comprehension. This is something none of us can control completely. However, with that being said, thanks to your wise thinking, I now know that there is a way in which we can test to confirm the others involved. When you share a spell with someone involved, the ritual will be activated just as it was before. As such, I think it would be wise if you brought Mr Longbottom to see me following the second Obstacle Course. It is my belief that he may play a part in this, so I would like to test that theory."

"Wait, Neville has to go through this as well?" Harry asked. "No. I won't let him. These dreams are horrible and I refuse to let someone else go through them because of me!" Harry was almost shouting, remembering the looks on Draco and Hermione's faces. The Headmaster simply nodded, with an understanding look on his face.

"I understand, Harry," he said kindly. "If there were any other way to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Mr Longbottom, or anyone else for that matter, is involved in this, I would gladly do it that way. Unfortunately, as it stands, this is the only way for us to know with any degree of certainty and I believe that it is of the utmost importance that we find the others involved."

Harry thought for a few moments before grudgingly nodding his head. Dumbledore smiled at him.

"There was one final thing which I will share with you," he said. "The dream sharing goes both ways. As such, Harry will, likely soon, experience the dreams of both of you as well. I cannot say with certainty what dreams these will be, nor give a time frame for when they will occur. I only know that they will be experienced at some point."

"I know that there is a lot which I cannot yet tell you, most of which is directly related to the ritual, but I am now certain that this must play out with all those involved," he said. "I know that it does cause some distress, but it is not only Harry's dreams that will be shared. Harry will also experience dreams of those who have experienced his."

"But, Professor," Draco began with a perplexed look on his face, "does that mean we will experience the dreams of the others? Will I experience Hermione's as well?"

"I cannot say with certainty whether you will experience each other's dreams," Dumbledore replied with a thoughtful look on his face. "That may be the case as it was three of you sharing the spell at the time, but I do not think, should this work for Mr Longbottom, that you will experience his and he, yours. I cannot be certain, however. The book I got this from was remarkably vague on that count."

The trio stood staring at their Headmaster for a few seconds before nodding. None of them really liked that Dumbledore was keeping something from them but they all understood his reasons. Harry, however, wanted an assurance that he would find out about this in due time.

"Sir, you are eventually going to tell us the whole story, aren't you?" Dumbledore's eyes held a mixture of joy and sadness in them.

"When I understand the process, and when I can say with absolute certainty who the others are, I shall tell you," he promised, with a grandfatherly smile and a twinkle in his eyes. "If I cannot work everything out, rest assured that I will tell you at the end of your Fourth Year. You will be old enough by then, I think, to understand the ritual in its entirety. Rest assured that there is nothing to be concerned about going forward for the three of you. I would, however, like it if you would inform me when the next two events occur."

"Of course," Harry said.

"Excellent," Dumbledore replied. "Off you go. As I understand it, there is something of a special surprise at breakfast this morning. I imagine that you would not like to miss such a happening." His eyes betrayed an almost child-like glee, and Harry couldn't help but chuckle even though he had no idea what Professor Dumbledore meant. It was not long before Dumbledore was chuckling merrily as well. Draco and Hermione had perplexed looks on their faces.

They made their way to breakfast where they found only a few people ready to eat. Breakfast was not served until the majority of the school was there, which meant that Harry, Draco and Hermione had a chance to talk about what they had just learned.

"So, we're going to be like family now," Draco said almost wistfully. Harry could see hope in his best friend's eyes. Harry had never seen that look with such ferocity on Draco's face before. Harry really didn't know why but he felt profoundly sad at that look in relation to what Draco had said.

"I don't know about you, Draco, but you, Hermione and Neville are already my family," Harry said. "At least, more so than my aunt and uncle are. Even more so than Dudley." Harry looked at Draco's face and saw a joyful look on his face. Hermione seemed slightly more subdued, but the look was remarkably similar.

"You really mean that?" Draco asked, looking Harry directly in the eyes, as though searching for any hint of doubt or deception.

"Of course I do," Harry said, smiling. "I don't have a family at home, so I may as well have one here. You are a huge part of it. Both of you." Harry knew how much this affected Draco. He could see unshed tears in his friend's eyes, something Harry had not seen in Draco before. Harry felt glad that he could be the one to bring that to him. Hermione, who was sitting next to Harry, was smiling broadly.

"Thank you, Harry. I may have a family at home, but I like the idea of a second family," she said happily.

They sat quietly for a few moments, before Harry spoke again.

"I don't like other people having to experience my dreams," he said. "I dream some pretty bad things. I mean, both of you were in rough shape when I spoke to you after you had them. I've gotten used to them, but …" Harry let himself trail off.

"It's not like we had much of a choice," Draco said with a grimace. "I blame Dumbledore, personally."

Harry was taken aback.

"Really Draco?" he asked. "Why?"

"Well, he's hiding something," Draco pointed out. "Several things, if I heard correctly. Clearly there's something there, and he's leaving us in the dark. He's involved in this ritual thing somehow."

"Well, yeah, he's hiding something," Harry admitted. "But he said that he would tell us, and I believe him. He might seem like a good liar, but his eyes give him away. It went away when we told him what happened and it came back when he promised to tell us eventually. Also, he was surprised that this happened to us. I don't think he's involved."

Draco's sceptical look remained, but Hermione looked positively thrilled.

"Wow Harry, I can't believe you picked up on his eye thing. Even I didn't," she admitted before looking at Draco. "But I do have to agree with Harry. Whatever is going on doesn't have anything to do with Dumbledore. Except that he has some information." Draco turned pink and began to look at his feet. Harry soon realised what the problem was.

"I see," Harry said with a smile. "I told you it'd take some time. Old habits die hard, or so I've been told. Don't worry about slipping up. It's not your fault. It's your father's."

Draco looked up at Harry and smiled slightly.

"Gotta learn to trust you more, don't I?" he said with a laugh. "I really thought you were going to go off at me. It was stupid. Sorry."

"No apologies necessary," Harry told an appreciative Draco before turning to Hermione. "I know what you're thinking Hermione, but no. Don't go looking for this in the library. Dumbledore told us he had only ever read one book with this in it and it was very old and would most likely be in the Restricted Section, if it's even at Hogwarts at all. Don't bother."

Hermione looked crestfallen before nodding her assent. That was all for their conversation as they realised that food was now filling their plates so they ate, soon being joined by Neville who was surprised to see them up so early. They all only half-lied by saying they had a restless night and couldn't sleep.

While they were eating, Harry's mind turned to Dumbledore's words about this breakfast, and he wondered what was so special about it.

It turned out he didn't have to wonder long.

There was a shriek and Harry turned to the Hufflepuff table just in time to see a Third Year boy floating towards the roof, followed by a Slytherin Second Year and then a Gryffindor Seventh. In about thirty seconds almost half of the Great Hall was on the roof. Then the most interesting thing happened. The people who hadn't floated into the air suddenly, and violently, shrank to about as tall as a four-year-old, clothes and all. This was how Harry and his friends found themselves. The only person seemingly unaffected in the entire Great Hall was Professor Quirrell who had not touched a bite of his food, preferring to stare at the ceiling.

Professor Snape was the height of a four-year-old and angrily running around the tables yelling at people, demanding an explanation. Professor Dumbledore was calmly floating around the room with a joyful look on his face. Professor McGonagall was floating around but with her arms folded and her lips pursed into a very white line.

Then there was a huge flash of white light and some words floated in mid-air.

 _This prank was brought to you by the greatest pranksters to have ever set foot in this castle. We do hope you have a terrific day._

 _WWW_

 _P.S. They will all wear off by the end of your first class. Have fun._

There was then a loud round of applause in the large Great Hall which was absolutely deafening. Harry knew there were only two people in the entire school who could possibly have done such a thing, but he didn't really feel like ruining their fun. Besides, they had gone to great lengths to actually prank themselves after all.

Harry, Draco and Neville laughed the whole way through their Charms class because of the way they looked. It was especially funny because Hermione would scowl at them, looking hilarious as she did so. Professor Flitwick, as Dumbledore had been, seemed to be enjoying the weightlessness. He ended up just letting them talk and joke until it had all worn off.

As they left the class, Harry watched as Draco suddenly shot up quickly, back to his original size, followed by Hermione, then himself and finally Neville. Everyone who was relegated to floating around in the air slowly made their way down except, curiously, Ron, who fell to the floor with a crash, much to the delight of everyone who witnessed it.

Harry was excited because they had Defence next which was his favourite class by far. This was due, in no small part, to the fact that Professor Quirrell had been the one to introduce him to magic. Harry was also topping the class soundly due to his apparent magical strength. Hagrid had once told him that he got that from both of his parents, who had both been rather exceptional in that department. Hermione, Draco and, to the surprise of everyone except for his friends, Neville were doing very well and were close to the top of the class.

Harry was seated between Hermione and Draco in the classroom, with Neville on Hermione's other side. Everyone in the room engaged in conversation before they saw Professor Quirrell stumble into the room, everyone turning their attention to the television-like screens in front of them. The Defence Professor went straight to the podium at the front of the classroom and looked around the room, his almost dead looking eyes sweeping over everyone before announcing, "No wands today," which caused a collective groan within the entire room.

"Today's lesson I will be giving a small lecture about the importance of not focusing solely on magic to win all of your battles," Draco snorted at this and Harry looked sideways at him. When Draco noticed, he looked down at his feet, Harry silently squeezed his forearm. "I will start the lesson with a personal story." The entire class seemed to sit up straighter at that.

"When I had just completed my Hogwarts education I did not have any clue whatsoever what I wanted to do with my life," Quirrell began. "I had inherited a lot of money from my pure-blood uncle after his untimely death in my Sixth Year so I had enough money to live comfortably for the rest of my life." There was a collective gasp at this as most people realised how much he would have to have had for that to be correct. "I graduated near the top of my year. _Near_ the top that is. I had the misfortune to be in the same year as Bellatrix Black who remains, to this very day, the most talented witch I have ever known."

Harry heard Neville let out a low moan and saw him bury his head in his hands. Harry looked at the shy boy, perplexed. He obviously had heard of Bellatrix Black before, but how? Or more to the point, why? Harry also thought he heard a groan from Draco as well. Professor Quirrell, obviously having not noticed Neville's sudden breakdown, continued.

"But that is beside the point. I decided I would take a 'round the world' trip, as it were. I spent time on every continent around the world, and in almost every country. I visited both wizarding and Muggle areas and I was actually very shocked to see the differences in culture, particularly in wizarding culture. For example, in Japan there is a focus on physical training almost as much as magical training. The Japanese witches and wizards I encountered while there are among some of the most powerful I have ever met. I duelled many but only won once in all my time there, which was against a fifteen-year-old schoolgirl, who was known as the weakest magically in her age group at school. They were all combining their physical knowledge with their spells. It was absolutely astounding to me, and something of an eye-opener.

"Needless to say, I was extremely impressed with these people and soon sought out the best teacher possible in order to gain these skills for myself. It took months of searching but I found him. My teacher, Hiroke, was a very old man, perhaps older than Professor Dumbledore is now and was just as wise. He taught me many very valuable lessons which, over time, I hope to share with you. _Some_ of the lessons at least. The first, I shall be attempting to teach today.

"Now, this was not one of the early lessons Hiroke taught me, but it is one of the most useful, particularly if, for one reason or another, you find yourself without a wand. Or even if you do have use of your wand, it can still be helpful. You see, he taught me to use my surroundings. He taught me how to use what is at my immediate disposal to the best of my abilities," Professor Quirrell's eyes glazed over slightly as if he were remembering something very close to him. "Today I wish to play a game. A competition if you will. I have decided to call it, 'Who's The Most Dangerous Person in the Classroom?'. Would anyone like to tell me who they think is the most dangerous person in the classroom?"

About ten hands went up, Hermione's included. Neville was now composed but his eyes were unfocused and Harry could tell he was hardly listening at all.

Professor Quirrell looked over the raised hands. "Miss Perks."

"I would have to say you, sir," came the small voice of the girl who sat directly in front of Harry.

"You are quite correct Miss Perks. Five points to Gryffindor," Quirrell replied with no hint of any form of self-congratulation. "But what would you all say if I changed the name to 'Who's The Most Dangerous _Student_ in the Classroom?'"

More hands went up, including to Harry's surprise, Neville's, and Harry wondered why that was until Quirrell spoke. "Mr Longbottom."

"Harry, sir," Neville replied quickly and easily.

Harry was shocked. _I'm not dangerous. What is Neville thinking?_ Harry thought, even his inner voice sounding surprised. _I mean, Nott and Zabini have much bigger mean streaks than me and Crabbe and Goyle are massive_.

"Why is it you say that, Mr Longbottom? Why not, say, Mr Zabini for example?" Quirrell asked, not betraying any emotion on his lined face.

"He killed You-Know-Who, sir. Even Professor Dumbledore couldn't manage that," Neville spoke quietly but his voice was heard above the silence of the room.

"Well, Mr Longbottom, I do see your reasoning but there is one main flaw in your argument," Quirrell replied quickly. "Mr Potter defeated the Dark Lord when he was only one year old. One year old. A one-year-old can barely do anything, let alone defeat one of the strongest Dark Lords in history. It does seem to just have been pure luck. Although …" He paused as if mulling over things in his brain. "There is not any true proof of what happened that night, so who really knows? My point is, that he has done nothing now that has shown that he is capable of being the most dangerous person here. He is not vicious enough. Mr Zabini, on the other hand, could very well be."

Harry wasn't sure what to feel at this point. Everything Quirrell said was absolutely true. It was just luck that he defeated one of the most powerful and feared wizards of all time. He may be brilliant at Defence Against the Dark Arts but that doesn't make him dangerous. And he definitely knew he did not have a mean streak in him at all. But oddly, Harry still felt slightly angry at the words. Like he had been insulted somehow.

"Mr Zabini, would you kindly move forward to the stage for a … demonstration?" The classroom broke out in whispers and murmurs as Zabini stood smirking, and moved to the stage. Quirrell waited for the noise to die down before continuing. "Mr Zabini. I would like you to observe your surroundings and I want you to tell me what, in this room, can be used in combat. I will give you one house point for each choice I deem good enough."

Zabini nodded and looked around the room for a minute before beginning.

"First of all, I could throw my opponent," for some reason he glared at Harry and Draco as he said this, "through one of those glass windows which would cause them to fall to their death. I could then use the shards of glass to my advantage causing severe blood loss which can lead to death. The sword you have on your wall I could use as well. I could use my own hands to strangle the life out of someone and my feet to cause internal injuries. I could drop a table from a great height onto more than one person. The metal chair legs could be used to impale someone. I could set someone on fire using the fireplace. I could use any bones of my fallen opponents as weapons. Their blood as well, though that would be a lot harder to use. The tapestries on your wall could be used to strangle someone. Any number of wands could be used to smash through someone's eye socket, not to mention what the wand itself could do. I could use the walls to bash people's heads against. The floor could be removed and filled with a spike pit. The ceiling could be collapsed. I could even remove the air, I suppose …"

Zabini looked thoughtful for a moment so Harry looked around. He saw at least twenty-five faces were absolutely deathly pale, including Hermione and Neville. Draco looked disgusted but not near as much as everyone else. Harry was disgusted himself, even though he was not at all surprised that Zabini could think like that.

"Professor, that's all I can think of right now," Zabini said and waited for a reply from Quirrell.

"Eight points to Slytherin," Quirrell said which caused Zabini to scoff.

"Only eight points? I named at least sixteen objects," Zabini said indignantly. "So I should get sixteen points!"

"I disagree Mr Zabini," Quirrell replied emotionlessly before turning to the rest of the class. "Would anyone like to hazard a guess as to why Mr Zabini does not receive full marks?" Harry raised his hand and he saw he was the only one. "Mr Potter."

"All of the other uses were kind of useless in combat. I mean a spike pit? Or removing the _air_?" Harry was now addressing Zabini. "All of the physical things you mentioned, such as throwing someone out a window, are a lot more useful in combat then removing the air or using someone's bones."

"Mr Potter is correct. Five points to Gryffindor." Zabini was fuming by this point. "But that was not the point of this exercise. Can anyone point out why Mr Zabini should be considered the Most Dangerous Student in the Classroom?" No hands were raised and Quirrell's face did not change one bit. "Out of all seventeen of Mr Zabini's suggestions there was not one mention of anything defensive. Not only that, but a lot of Mr Zabini's choices would allow him to kill his opponent. This willingness to kill and his lack of regard for his own safety is what earns Mr Zabini that title, despite how foolish people may perceive it to be. Now, sit down Mr Zabini."

Zabini angrily, yet somehow smugly, complied with the Professor. Most of the other students still looked quite ill at some of what Zabini had said. Harry figured that the majority of them had never really known violence that much. The rest of the lesson was spent with Professor Quirrell giving demonstrations on Muggle fighting techniques. Harry felt that this was an interesting choice. Most pure-blooded witches and wizards would not be expecting any form of physical attack because they would be too focused on the idea of magic. By the end of the class, the entire room was buzzing. It was almost as if half of the class had had a revelation. Harry didn't feel the same way. Growing up in the Muggle world as his cousin's boxing bag gave him a healthy respect for Muggle fighting. Or perhaps fear, was a better word for it.

The rest of the week seemed to go slowly. There was a lot of homework that Harry had to catch up on and Harry had never been one to keep up with such things. Luckily for him, Draco and Neville, Hermione was there to help them concentrate on doing their essays and other work for the various subjects. There were often some very late nights while they all tried to finish one essay or another on a multitude of different topics.

The second Obstacle Course was on the horizon, but this time they felt far more prepared. Neville was far more confident than he was before the first course, though he was still the most nervous of the four by far. Hermione and Harry had mastered everything to do with Transfiguration they had learned up until that point, including the Reverse Transfiguration spell which stopped most forms of Transfiguration, with the main exception being the Animagus Transformation. All four had become proficient in Charms. Neville was thoroughly trouncing everyone in Herbology, as was Draco in Potions. All of them felt confident that they could easily pass the next Obstacle Course with few problems.

The week passed with Hermione and Draco not having any of the nightmares that had popped up before, though Harry did have one late in the week. It was the same as usual. Dumbledore. Professor McGonagall. Hagrid on a motorbike. A green light. A high-pitched laugh. He woke up to find Draco shaking him and Neville watching Harry, looking utterly terrified. Apparently, Harry had been thrashing in his sleep and even going so far as to yell. Seamus was concerned about Harry as well, though he was watching from his bed. Ron had not even woken up.


	17. Into the Forest

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

— CHAPTER FOURTEEN —

 _Into the Forest_

Harry spent the night prior to the Second Obstacle Course sitting in the common room with his friends for hours, with some time going into studying, though mostly they spent their time goofing around together. When he finally made his way to his bed, he fell asleep faster than he had anticipated and even managed to have pleasant dreams as opposed to the nightmares that he was so accustomed to. There was one dream in particular that Harry was able to recall entirely when he woke up.

 _He was sitting on a patch of grass on a hillside that overlooked a wonderfully blue lake. He looked around and noticed the beginnings of a forest close to the lake's edge that, even from his vantage point, seemed to go on a long way. He felt the sun hitting him and the light breeze brushing across his skin and through his hair. He sighed contentedly and lay back on the grass looking up at the sky. It was almost completely blue with the occasional white cloud floating into his sight._

 _"It's beautiful here, isn't it?" Harry heard a voice say from behind him. He sat up and looked around. He came face to face with a beautiful red-haired woman with one of the biggest and most striking smiles he could ever remember having seen. What he noticed most about her, though, were her green eyes. There was something in them that he couldn't quite explain. She looked to be in her early twenties and, though Harry did not know who she was, he could tell almost immediately that he could trust her. He managed after some time to nod. "Yes. I think this may be one of the most beautiful places on Earth," the woman said, as she looked out at the lake. Harry didn't even hear the man come up from his side._

 _"Come now Lily, we have been to some amazingly beautiful places, you know," the man said smiling. Harry's heart almost stopped when he heard the woman's name. Lily? As in my mum?_

 _"I know, James," Harry's mouth stayed open at this particular revelation. "But being with you and Harry makes it just that much better." Lily smiled at her son with her green eyes sparkling._

 _"Mum?" Lily nodded, smiling. Harry turned to James. "Dad?"_

" _Well, if I'm not your father, I'm going to have to kill someone!" James said, laughing. Lily pretended to look shocked, but laughed as well, while still hitting him lightly on the arm._

 _"Be nice!" Lily said smiling and laughing. Her laugh was beautifully rich and full._

 _"But you're … you're …" Harry trailed off not really wanting to continue talking about this._

 _"Dead?" James finished for him. "Yeah. But this is so nice so why should we spoil it?"_

The dream had felt like it had gone on forever, with Harry finally being able to talk to his parents in a limited capacity. Most of the time either they didn't or couldn't answer, but Harry cherished it nonetheless.

When Draco woke Harry up he was so irritated that he almost wanted to hit him. Of course, that didn't last long when Harry realised that it was _only_ a dream. Harry sighed sadly and got up. _At least I got that chance_ , Harry thought to himself.

After he got ready for the day Harry went to find Hermione, Neville and Draco, who were sitting nervously in the common room, talking about what was coming up for the Obstacle Course. They weren't even sure where it was going to be held, much less what was going to be involved. Neville seemed somewhat subdued and Harry hoped that his self-doubts hadn't resurfaced. Draco and Hermione seemed to be talking about what sort of potions test they might have to face in the next course when Harry arrived.

"Morning," Harry said cheerfully.

"Good morning, Harry," Hermione replied, looking away from Draco. "You look happy. Did you sleep well last night?"

"Yeah, actually. I did. For the first time in a while now," Harry said with a smile. "I didn't have any of those stupid nightmares like usual. This one was one of the best I've ever had."

"What was it about?" Hermione said seeming to be distracted.

"I talked to my parents."

That got the others' attention. Hermione looked gleeful while Draco and Neville looked happy as well but looked as if they were thinking.

"Can you tell us about it Harry?" Hermione asked quickly. Ever since their meeting with Dumbledore, Hermione and Draco had been increasingly interested in Harry's dreams.

"Yeah. We were near a lake surrounded by what seemed to be a rather large forest." Hermione's eyes widened but Harry didn't notice as he blissfully continued recounting his dream. "We were on a hill overlooking the lake and my mum walked up from behind me and talked to me, followed by my dad. It was great and it seemed as if it wouldn't end. Or maybe I just didn't want it to. That's why I was angry at you this morning, Draco." Draco nodded.

"No harm done," he said with a wave of his hand. As Harry continued to recount his dream, he noticed that Hermione seemed to be bouncing in her seat.

"You alright, Hermione?" Neville asked worriedly.

"Yes. Yes, I am," she said quickly. "Harry. I think you may have just experienced my dream. My parents took me to that lake when I was seven and I remember just talking to them like that. That means the ritual thing is moving along."

Neville looked rather confused as he had not been told about the ritual as of that point. Harry thought for a minute, still unable to wipe the smile off his face.

"That's good, isn't it?" he asked. "At least now I know why it didn't end badly, like so many of my other dreams." Suddenly Harry frowned. "But if that was the case were they really my parents? I mean I don't remember them at all."

Hermione and Draco both looked pensive for a minute before Draco spoke up.

"Probably," he said. "It's not like you saw Hermione's parents. I guess your mind just picked the right people for the dream. I mean, you might not really remember them, but they were a part of your life. Somewhere in you has to remember at least a little."

"I guess you're right," Harry said. "I just thought they might have actually been Hermione's parents."

"No, mine are very different," Hermione replied. "I agree with Draco. They were probably your parents. Or at least your memory of them."

"You're right," Harry said, and his mind drifted back to them for a moment.

"Well I'm glad you got the chance, Harry, but the Obstacle Course is only in a few hours so we really have to prepare -" Hermione was about to continue but was cut off by Neville.

"Wait. Sorry, Hermione, but what are you all talking about? I'm confused," he said.

"We were going to wait to tell you, but I guess we can tell you now," Harry said and then went on to recount their conversation with Dumbledore. By the end, Neville seemed to still be confused, but at least was less so.

"It seems like Dumbledore's keeping something from you, Harry," Neville said quietly, obviously not wanting to say anything bad against the headmaster.

"Oh, he is," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "We called him out on it and he told us that he didn't think we were old enough. He promised to tell us either when he knows for sure who everyone involved is or at the end of our Fourth Year." Neville nodded his understanding and Harry looked at him.

"Also, Neville, when we finish the Course today you and I have to go to Dumbledore's Office," he said. "He said that you might be involved. We'll have to wait and see."

For the remainder of the time before the Course, they talked it over and tried as best they could to come up with some kind of strategy. They also went back over some of the more difficult Transfiguration spells that they were finding difficult.

The four of them made their way into the Great Hall, where they found that they were the first of the First Year teams to arrive. Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, Quirrell and, to their surprise, Dumbledore were waiting for them. Even Hagrid was with them. Dumbledore caught Harry's eye and smiled and winked, lifting Harry's spirits considerably. Hagrid waved at the four of them as they sat down at the Gryffindor table, awaiting the rest of the teams.

The last to arrive were, unsurprisingly, the Slytherin team, who strutted into the Great Hall, glaring at Harry, Draco, Hermione and Neville. Harry and Hermione kept their emotions in check, but it was clear that Draco was not very good at that. He kept it to himself, but looked furious.

Instead of Professor McGonagall it was Dumbledore who stood to address the participants.

"Welcome, First Years, to the second of seven Obstacle Courses," he said jovially, his eyes twinkling fiercely. "I am quite sure that you are all wondering where your next adventure will take you. Well think on it no further! Today, you will be going into the Forbidden Forest for this month's Obstacle Course."

A murmur broke out among the various groups of First Years before Theodore Nott got to his feet.

"But we aren't allowed in there! It's forbidden! There are werewolves and a lot of other dark creatures in there as well!" Harry felt his stomach drop. _Werewolves are real?_ Harry thought with a sense of dread creeping into his stomach. He looked around at his friends. Neville had paled considerably, as had Hermione. Draco seemed to remain calm, however, and Harry felt better seeing that.

"Rest assured, Mr Nott, that there are no werewolves in the Forbidden Forest," Dumbledore replied with some mirth. "If there were, they would be no threat as it is not the full moon. As for other Dark Creatures, I don't believe one would classify unicorns as dark, would they?" Harry chuckled at the Headmaster's joke along with Neville and Draco but Hermione looked amazed. Evidently, unicorns were as much a surprise to her as werewolves were to Harry. "But I digress. You will all be going into the forest but you will not be alone. Hagrid has kindly consented to accompany you into the forest. Trust me when I say that Hagrid is well equipped to handle any creature you may find within. I will now hand over to Professor McGonagall who will give you your instructions for today. I look forward to viewing your progress throughout the day."

With that, Dumbledore left the podium. Harry wondered how exactly he was going to watch everyone's progress in the forest without being there himself. He didn't have long to think on it as McGonagall took the stage.

"As Professor Dumbledore has just said this task will take place within the Forbidden Forest and there will be absolutely no threat to you," she said, sounding much less friendly than Dumbledore had. "Of course, I cannot tell you of the tasks at this point because it would give you all too much of an advantage. I will say, however, that there are some tasks which you may find more difficult than the last Obstacle Course. As you know, you may drop out at any point and your time and place will be recorded. If there are any problems you will send red sparks up into the air, though Hagrid should be equipped to handle most situations.

"Now, as for the Course itself, it will involve the same subjects as the last one, with the exception of Flying." Groans were heard in the hall at that from a few students, Harry and Draco included. "This Course has basically the same premise as the last one, that is, overcome one obstacle and move on to the next one in the correct order. However, for the Creatures aspect you will be required to view a centaur. This is required in order to finish the Course, though it can be done at any point. If all other aspects are completed, then you will have twenty minutes to find a centaur. Luckily for us, the centaurs have consented, after some considerable bargaining, to be a part of this, though they were extremely vague as to why they would do such a thing. Nevertheless, they will not be hostile towards any of you.

"We have decided that the team to go first this month shall be the team consisting of Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom, as they completed the Course in First Place last month. The rest will follow in the order in which they placed last month. Potter, Malfoy, Granger, Longbottom. Follow me."

With that McGonagall left the podium and began to walk briskly out of the Great Hall followed by the four First Years and Hagrid. They walked in silence to Hagrid's hut. When they reached it, McGonagall simply nodded to them, a very faint smile on her lips as she turned and strode back to the Great Hall.

"Alright then!" he said, grinning. "Let's get goin'. Gotta get to the first part as fast as we can. I can tell yer that Defence will be the first." Harry turned to his friends and discovered, thankfully, that they were all frightened of going into the Forest as well. Harry looked back to Hagrid to see the giant of a man grinning like a madman. It was almost as though he thought it was perfectly normal. Even Fang, Hagrid's dog, looked scared. But not Hagrid himself. He was elated.

They all walked in silence except for Hagrid, who was enthusing about the forest and the Obstacle Courses and the fact that their group was going first and that they trusted him to lead children into the Forest. Hermione was sticking extremely close to Hermione, to the point that it seemed like she was one terrifying moment away from burying her face in his shoulder.

As they got further into the Forest, Harry seemed to get calmer. Perhaps it was because it was the day, but the Forest didn't seem to be as terrifying as he had expected. There was the odd unexpected movement here and there, and Hagrid had to help them avoid poisonous plants, but it was actually rather peaceful the further they got in.

Just as Harry was starting to feel more peaceful than terrified, the Forest opened into a paddock of sorts, which even had its own fence. There were no trees inside the fence, but there were a lot of small creatures which were each holding something that resembled a shield, although Harry couldn't quite tell for sure what they were. Their other distinctive feature was that they each wore what looked like a red hat on their heads.

"Alright," Hagrid declared. "All yer have to do fer this one is to repel one Red Cap each. When yeh've done that, we can move on. START!" Hagrid bellowed.

Harry, noticing the timer appear on the back of his hand, wracked his brain truing to think of ways to repel a Red Cap. To Harry's surprise, Draco immediately stepped through a fence, which Hagrid held open for him, and walked close to the small creatures. Harry and Hermione immediately followed, while Neville reluctantly did. They watched as Draco pointed his wand at one Red Cap.

" _Flipendo_!" he shouted, and the creature went soaring across to the other side of the paddock.

Of course, Harry thought. The knock-back jinx. It was a spell that they had learned early on in Defence, though Harry had not realised that it could potentially be useful against creatures as well as humans. Harry pointed his own wand at one of the creatures that almost cowered.

" _Flipendo_!" Harry's spell made his Red Cap go further than Draco's. Hermione followed suit and Neville after her. When Neville saw that his spell had, indeed, worked his mood improved considerably.

"Well done!" Hagrid called. "Best be goin' now, I think."

The four left the paddock and entered back into the forest and followed Hagrid to the next Obstacle. As they were walking Harry noticed the timer once again on the back of his hand. One minute and eight seconds had passed since Hagrid started the course. He also noticed that they weren't feeling anywhere near as frightened as they had been during the first one.

Their path was soon blocked by a small body of water. Hagrid then turned to look at them.

"This is yer next task," he explained. "You have to make it across the lake without touchin' the water. If yeh touch the water you immediately get disqualified." Hagrid finished talking and Harry looked at the fairly small lake in front of them.

"How are we meant to do this one?" Neville asked worriedly. Draco thought for a minute before answering.

"Well, we could use Heating Charms to dry it up, but that would take forever …" he trailed off, thinking again.

"We're too young to conjure anything," Harry thought aloud. "Even if we could, I doubt we could conjure anything to actually get us across. That also means no Transfiguration either."

"What we need to do," Hermione started, "is dry up the water …" She paused, her eyes lighting up.

"What is it Hermione?" Neville asked.

"Of course!" Hermione exclaimed. "The Drought Charm. We haven't been taught it in class but it is in _Standard Book of Spells_."

"Oh yeah! I remember that one," Harry pointed his wand at the lake that was about twenty metres long and ten metres across.

" _Siccitas_!" he said loudly, but the spell was not enough. It dried up some of the water, enough so that the water level dropped about one tenth. Hermione looked to Draco and Neville.

"Can either of you do this spell?" she asked. They both shook their heads. "Well, we don't have time to teach you right now so Harry and I will cast the spell as much as we need to. Just know that this spell is rather draining when used a lot at one time, so we may not be of much help in the next Obstacle."

With that, Hermione turned to the artificial lake and did the Drought Charm. All in all, Harry and Hermione had to cast the spell six times each before it was safe enough to cross. When they did cross, they noticed that Hagrid had walked around. Harry chuckled to himself, wondering whether that particular response to the Obstacle would be allowed. He also noticed the lake fill itself back up once they stepped out of it.

"You were right, Hermione," Harry said, taking a deep breath. "That does take it out of you. I wasn't expecting to feel this drained."

"Nor was I," Hermione agreed before turning to Draco and Neville who looked slightly unhappy that they couldn't help. "We'll teach you the spell back at the castle. Let's hope the next one isn't too hard. We may need a little while to get over that."

Hagrid congratulated them and walked them to the next Obstacle. Harry noticed that almost six minutes had passed since the beginning of the course Harry was wondering if that was good or not when he saw the next part of the course.

The area of the Forest they were now in was much darker than they had experienced before, and it looked like it was only going to get worse as the trees seemed to get thicker ahead of them. It took Harry a moment to realise that some of these trees that he was looking at were actually suits of armour.

He laughed when he thought about how out of place they looked in the forest. He also came to the conclusion that this was the Transfiguration Obstacle but he had no idea what they would have to do if it was anything else. He looked to his friends and saw that they all had the same amused yet confused look on their faces.

"This one, yeh'll have to reverse the Transfiguration of them suits of armour there," Hagrid explained. "There's one fer each of yeh." Harry noticed that the big, bearded man was still beaming.

Neville surprised the others by talking first.

" _Conuerte_?" he asked nervously and received three nods. At this he looked slightly downcast. Even though they had gone through this spell with Neville a lot, it was clear that he still wasn't sure that he could do it properly.

"You'll be fine, Nev," Neville looked up in surprise and looked into Harry's emerald green eyes. Harry couldn't tell what the look in his friend's face was. A mixture of awe and thanks, perhaps. Harry had been told rather a lot about Neville's grandmother in the time since they had met, and he came to realise that there wasn't a whole lot of overt affection in their relationship. Harry wondered if it was his shortening of Neville's name. It didn't seem like something that Neville's grandmother would do, so maybe Neville had never had something like that. Harry wasn't sure, but smiled anyway. "I've seen you do the spell before, so I think you can do it now."

"Thanks Harry," Neville said, a determination like Harry had seen only a few times in Neville, shining in his eyes. He instantly drew his wand, pointed it at the suit of armour and shouted, " _Conuerte_!" As if out of nowhere, the texture of the armour changed to wood, it lengthened and formed a long tree trunk and eventually sprouted branches and leaves. Harry clapped Neville on the shoulder.

"See, Nev? I told you that you could do it," Harry said, grinning at his friend who beamed back.

Harry then looked at the suit of armour next to Neville's tree. He still felt very drained from the previous obstacle, but he knew that this spell was one that he had practiced a lot and never seemed to take very much out of him. He steeled himself, pointed his wand at the suit of armour.

" _Conuerte_ ," he said and watched as his own suit of armour quickly grew into a tree.

He turned around to see Neville being congratulated by Draco and Hermione. They then quickly changed their suits of armour back and soon they were on their way to the next Obstacle, with Harry and Hermione slowly feeling better after all of their spell work.

Hagrid physically stopped them from going any further when they reached what seemed to be a clearing. It seemed to be shrouded in a mist. They also noticed six cauldrons on the ground with potions in them and four flasks by each.

"I couldn't remember everythin' for this one so Slughorn gave me a note," Hagrid informed the four students. He cleared his throat and read from a parchment. " _The students must choose the correct potion to use to go through the Knock-Out Mist. If they do not choose correctly, upon entering the mist they will slip into unconsciousness and will be required to pull out of the Course. None of the other five potions are at all harmful. The students are to walk to the other side of the mist and back._ So there yeh go. Best get on with it."

In very much the same way they did in the last Course, Harry and Neville hung back while Hermione and Draco dove straight into it. After a few minutes, they began eliminating cauldrons.

"Well that there is Pepper-Up Potion," Draco said, eliminating one of the six.

"And that's Pumpkin Juice," Hermione said while Harry and Neville burst out laughing. Though they were soon shut up by a glare from both Hermione and Draco.

"That's a boil cure," Draco said, pointing at a cauldron with a dark yellow liquid in it.

"This one's a Memory-Enhancing potion. I can tell from the smell and the blood-red colour of the potion," Hermione said, while Neville looked at the potion with a hopeful look.

"Sorry, Neville," Draco said with a sad tone. "It isn't permanent and is best used sparingly."

"Oh," Neville said, looking at his feet. "Okay."

The last two potions were evidently very difficult to discern properly as five minutes passed as Draco and Hermione looked at the potions, occasionally muttering to themselves or each other. Eventually, Draco sighed.

"Okay," he said, annoyed. "These two seem pretty much the same, except that they have different smells. I've never made either potion before so I can't tell the difference."

Hermione wafted the smells towards her, hoping to discern the difference enough to choose the right one but sighed as well.

"I don't know, Draco," she said with a shrug. "Maybe we should just guess?"

"It's better than wasting time and not getting an answer." By this point, Neville and Harry were close by. "Who's going to be the one to try first?"

"I will," Harry said quickly. If anyone was going to get knocked out it would be him. "Just give me one and I will try. If it works, drink some yourselves and follow me."

Draco nodded and picked up a flask, filling it with the liquid closest to him and handing it to Harry. "Good luck."

Harry smiled anxiously and lifted the flask to his lips. It wasn't necessarily the worst thing that Harry had ever tasted, but it certainly wasn't pleasant. He resisted the urge to spit it out and, when he finally gulped it all down, he felt something odd happen in his head, though he couldn't tell what it was or even if it had anything to do with the potion.

"Okay then," he said confidently. "Here I go."

Harry walked towards the mist which, he realised upon closer inspection, had a slightly purplish tinge to it. Each step seemed to increase Harry's anxiety, and he unknowingly braced himself to be knocked out as he stepped into the mist.

Nothing happened.

He smiled and turned to his friends and gave the thumbs up. They all quickly downed a flask and joined Harry in walking through the mist. As they walked Harry realised that he didn't know how long the potion would actually last.

"I think we should move faster," he explained. "We don't know how long the potion will take to wear off."

"Good thinking, Harry," Draco said as he sped up almost to a run. When they reached the opposite edge of the mist, the others turned to walk back like they were supposed to but Harry had seen the shadow of something out of the corner of his eye. Hoping that it might be a centaur, Harry walked further away from the mist and into a thicker part of the forest.

A jolt of pain shot through his forehead and Harry instinctively reached his right hand up to his scar. The pain suddenly increased and Harry saw something dark in front of him before the pain became too bad, forcing his eyes closed and his knees buckle and hit the ground below. Through the searing pain, he could hear screams behind him, loud and terrified.

Harry tried to force his body to work through the pain and, though his hand was still on his forehead clutching at his now very warm scar, he opened his eyes as wide as he could. As the world around him came into focus, he saw what had been causing the screams.

The creature, whatever it was, seemed to be wearing the darkest possible robes. It had its hood up and was bent over something on the ground. Harry couldn't see what it was bent over, but he saw glimmers of silver and wondered vaguely if it was a unicorn.

The _thing_ looked up from whatever it was that lay on the forest floor and turned slowly. Though Harry could not see the thing's face, he could see thick, silvery liquid dripping from its mouth. The creature looked straight at Harry as he struggled to regain his footing. As Harry locked eyes with the creature, he felt the pain in his forehead increase yet again, but this time he did not buckle and his eyes did not close.

In one swift motion, the creature stood and glided quickly towards Harry. Yet again, Harry heard his friends scream as the thing advanced on him, clearly intent on doing him so harm. Moments before the creature could reach him, Harry felt someone grab under his arms and lift him up off the ground, pulling him away from the advancing threat. A few moments later, Harry dropped lightly to the ground where he sat, watching events unfold.

The creature seemed to stop in its tracks as Harry heard the sounds of hooves hitting the forest floor. Then, as quick as the creature had moved, there was something standing between Harry and the monster. He saw that it was half horse and half man. A centaur. The centaur charged at the monster, which flinched away for a moment before turning and gliding away soundlessly through the trees and into darkness, the further away it got from Harry, the less pain he felt.

As the pain dwindled, Harry looked around him to find that there was, in fact, a whole herd of centaurs around him and not just the one that had protected him from the creature. In front of the centaur was the dead unicorn. He also saw his friends rushing towards where he sat on the forest floor. Hermione was shaking and Neville was pale. Draco looked livid.

Harry looked at the centaur in front of him, who had turned to face the young First Year.

"Who … What was that?" Harry found that his voice was very small and afraid as he got to his feet with the aid of Draco. The centaur looked to be sizing Harry up before answering.

"Ah, Harry Potter, someone inexplicably evil. It is incredibly evil to slay a unicorn, particularly a baby, as that one was," the centaur replied, raising his head slightly to look above him. "You see, unicorns are pure creatures. They epitomise the side of light. So much so that their blood has very distinct healing powers. The blood of a unicorn can keep you alive, even when you are an inch from death, but at a horrible price. When one commits this crime against nature, they are forced to live a cursed life. A half-life, some say."

Harry's mind was swimming, trying desperately to comprehend what he was being told.

"So that … person … was drinking the unicorn's blood?" Draco asked quietly.

"Yes, Draco Malfoy. He was," the centaur replied, looking away from Harry's eyes. "There have not ever been many men who have been forced to do so. Can you think of anyone who might feel the need to use unicorn blood as a means of survival?" No answer came. The four First Years were in shock. Hermione now had hold of Neville's arm. Neville was too frightened to be embarrassed, as he normally would be. The centaur simply looked into the heavens. "Mars has been particularly bright lately."

"Uh … Okay," Harry said shakily, perplexed by the sudden change in the centaur. "We really must be going. We have to finish our Obstacle Course … We only have Herbology to go, I think."

"Ah. Firenze," the centaur said, looking back to Harry. "My name is Firenze. I would normally introduce my herd as well but you are in grave peril staying in this forest for longer than you absolutely must. We will accompany you back to Hagrid. Rest assured, the Knock-Out mist does not affect us. Also, your potion will last." Once again, the centaur turned its head to the sky as did the other centaurs with him.

"Thank you, Firenze," Harry said. This sentiment was expressed by the others soon after.

Harry, Hermione, Neville, Draco and the herd of centaurs all made their way back through the mist. Hermione had finally let go of Neville and was no longer shaking, though it was obvious she was still shaken up by the experience. Harry seemed to feel a lot calmer around the centaurs.

When they emerged on the other side, Hagrid was beside himself.

"What took yeh so long? I've been worried …" And then Hagrid noticed the centaurs. "Ah. I see yeh met the centaurs then. Hullo Firenze."

"Hello Hagrid. Mars grows brighter by the night," Firenze replied not looking down from the sky above.

"Uh … Firenze. It's daytime. How do yeh go about stargazing durin' the day?" Hagrid asked, slightly annoyed.

"We have our ways," Firenze replied cryptically.

"Alright then," Hagrid then turned to Harry and his friends who were all still pale. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Hagrid," Harry lied. "Let's just get to the Herbology Obstacle."

Hagrid nodded and they took off, leaving the sky-gazing centaurs behind. They walked back towards the artificial lake but veered to the left. Harry checked his hand and noticed that just over twenty-two minutes had passed. The Charms and Potions Obstacles had really cut into their time. That and the run-in with the centaurs and the monster.

Neville gasped when he saw what their next Obstacle was. And when Harry realised what it was he gasped too, as did Hermione and Draco. It was like a Venus Fly Trap only twenty times larger. And it looked angry. So angry, in fact, that it looked as though it was ready to tear off someone's head.

"A Man-Eating Snargalap," Neville said in a low voice. "I've read about these in the Herbology text. The only way to stop it from eating you is to use water. That momentarily shrinks it allowing a person to get past unharmed. But we don't have water. What do we do?" This last question was directed at anyone, though no-one answered for a minute before Hermione let out an excited squeak.

"I saw Fred and George Weasley cast a charm towards Ronald in the common room a few weeks ago," she said excitedly. It was a weak stream of water. But I can't seem to think of the incantation." she frowned, obviously thinking hard.

"I saw that too," Harry said, also trying to think of the incantation.

"I think it was _Adaquo Expello_ , if I remember correctly," Draco interjected. When Harry and Hermione looked at him, he shrugged. "I've seen others use it as well. I have a pretty good memory. Have a go, Neville. I don't think there's a particularly intricate wand movement."

Neville wasn't expecting Draco to let him to actually do the charm so he gave Draco a grateful smile and turned his wand to the Man-Eating Snargalap and, with a confidence Harry had not seen, Neville said, " _Adaquo Expello_ ," and a small burst of water came from his wand, hitting the plant and it shrunk to no bigger than a hand. Hagrid clapped and said shouted, "END TIME!"

The timer on the back of Harry's hand was stopped on twenty-five minutes and thirty-four seconds. It was not certain how that would stack up against everybody else's time, but Harry was happy that his team had completed the course, at the very least. He made sure to congratulate Neville especially as they followed Hagrid out of the Forest.

They were all chattering amongst each other as they approached the edge of the forest where they noticed a figure was standing. All four students had their wands out and pointed at the figure as they got closer, still wary after what had happened during the Potions obstacle.

As they drew closer they realised just who they had their wands trained on. It was Professor Dumbledore. Harry was surprised to see Dumbledore. _Wasn't he supposed to be watching … oh._ Harry realised that Dumbledore had seen what had happened. As they realised who it was they lowered their wands. The look on Dumbledore's face was unreadable.

"Ah … Hagrid. They are done," he said, seeming distracted. "Excellent. Now, I believe you are needed in the Great Hall. While you are gone, do you mind if I talk to Mr Potter, Miss Granger, Mr Malfoy and Mr Longbottom in your cabin?"

"Course not, Professor Dumbledore, sir. Go right ahead," Hagrid said before leaving towards the castle. Dumbledore ushered the four kids into Hagrid's hut silently and they all sat on the very oversized furniture. Dumbledore sat in a chair, looking remarkably small, and gazed directly at Harry, a sad look on his face.

"Harry. I was watching the obstacle course from the castle." Seeing the confused looks, he decided to elaborate. "You see, a spell like that cannot be accurately cast in the castle, though the grounds are something different altogether."

"But, sir, Professor Quirrell uses a spell to allow us to view his lessons easier. And that is in the castle," Harry said.

"Ah, yes. You see, Professor Quirrell has a love of old and forgotten magics, which you know about, I believe," Dumbledore explained. "You even bought his favourite book on the subject if I am not mistaken. His spell is only useful for very short distances, whereas the one I prefer to use works on a far larger scale, but cannot be used within the castle walls," Dumbledore replied, still looking slightly sad. "But, as interesting as this all is, that is not what I wanted to discuss with all of you."

"What _did_ you want to discuss Professor?" Hermione asked, though it was clear that she knew what he was going to say.

"I had not wished to worry you with such things, though I can see that I have no choice in the matter any longer," the older man said sadly. "Do any of you know what that monster that was drinking the unicorn blood was?" Dumbledore received four head shakes so he continued. "I believe that what you saw, was actually Voldemort in some form."

Harry gaped at the Headmaster and noticed Neville, Hermione and Draco doing the same thing.

"Voldemort? But isn't he … isn't he dead?" Harry asked in a quizzical voice. Dumbledore shook his head sadly.

"Alas, it is my belief that he is not," he replied. "I have reason to believe that, on Halloween in 1981, Voldemort was not completely killed. You see, the Killing Curse is used to rip the soul from one's body. This is why there are no true signs of death when the Killing Curse is cast. But, and this is truly only conjecture on my part, I think that when the curse bounced off of you, Harry, it lost some of its power and could not send Voldemort's soul to the afterlife as it would usually do. In doing so, this allowed Voldemort to roam the world, albeit in a decrepit, non-corporeal form. If I am correct, my current theory is that he has somehow found a body to inhabit, however there is a fatal flaw in that his survival is tenuous at best. Hence why he is forced to kill a unicorn and drink its blood. Hogwarts has the largest population of unicorns on this continent, almost in the whole world, in fact. That is why, I suspect, he has come here. A larger access to the blood that he needs to survive. On a slightly happier note, unicorn blood can only keep one alive, not give someone their life back. Therefore, this is not a long-term solution for Voldemort."

"So … V-V-V-Voldemort is alive?" Draco stammered, sounding like a hurt child.

"No. He is not," Dumbledore said fervently. "At least not in any way that counts. If he is inhabiting someone else's body, then he is merely a parasite. It is not his own body. His soul lives on, but until he can find a way to make a new body for his soul, he cannot be truly alive." That was somewhat reassuring, but all four of them still had their doubts.

"Is Hogwarts safe?" Neville asked quietly and looked worried when Dumbledore sighed.

"I cannot be certain," he replied, looking upset. "But I can be certain that it is safer at Hogwarts than it is anywhere else in the world. I do not think that Voldemort would be foolish enough, in his current form, to leave the Forest and approach the castle. He is simply too weak. In fact, I would not be surprised to learn that he has not taken up residence in the forest, but somewhere nearby."

"Sir," Harry said hoarsely. "When Voldemort looked up at me, my scar hurt. It even started to get hot as well." Dumbledore's eyes widened slightly.

"Has this happened before, Harry?" he asked with a worried voice. Harry thought for a minute before replying.

"Never this bad," he explained. "Whenever I wake up after having the dream with the green light and the laughing, it always feels like it prickles, but that is nothing compared to what it was like then. The pain was so bad that I couldn't stand up properly." Dumbledore looked directly at Harry, looking extremely serious.

"If this happens again Harry, it would be best if you inform me," he said. "Not so much the prickling, but if it burns like that again let me know." Harry nodded, hearing the seriousness in the Headmaster's voice.

"I will, Professor," he promised. "Was there anything else?" Dumbledore looked at the four of them as though he wanted to say something, but eventually shook his head.

"No," he replied. "That is all. You may now go. Though I would ask you to keep what I have told you to yourselves. It would cause a panic if people discovered what I, and now you as well, believe." The four of them nodded and Dumbledore smiled, a twinkle in his eyes. "I will have to get back to watching the other teams. You did very well, by the way. All of you."

The four of them smiled at the Headmaster before making their way out of the hut and back up to the castle, all of them thinking only of the Forbidden Forest, the centaurs and, most of all, of Voldemort. All of them knew what it could mean to the wizarding community if Voldemort were to ever fully return. And Harry feared that there was nothing that he could do to stop it.


End file.
